Maybe Someday
by Honour Nature
Summary: Epilogue is up! Hunter still has memories of the abuse he suffered while living with his biological family. Can Cam and the team help him face these memories? Please read and review!
1. Hunter's Nightmare

A/N: Hi all, this is Chero. This story deals with the subject of incest, and the pain it causes. I'm an incest survivor, and I remember how I felt..... how I still feel sometimes. There will be dreams and flashbacks with descriptions in them. Some of the things are what happened to me. Also, I'm a girl, so some things might not be exactly as some guys who have gone through this feel. So just as a warning, this's what this story will deal with. I hope it can help someone.  
  
A/N 08/07/03: I've decided not to continue with this fic being a companion piece to Hard Rain. I'm sorry if you guys liked the two together, but this fic is a sort of therapy for me. I need to feel free to take my time with it.  
  
Maybe Someday  
  
Chapter One: Hunter's Nightmare  
  
Hunter sat, looking at the lake with a pensive expression. He liked the quiet, the peacefulness of the lake. Memories were starting to come back, from before he was adopted. And though he was loathe to admit it, he was scared.  
  
Blake didn't even know about that part of his past. 'What would he think of me then?' he always thought. But Blake had been there when the nightmares had him whimpering, and then screaming. His new parents had kind of scared him at first. But they seemed kind. Not like Jake. Not like him at all.  
  
They had knowledge in their eyes, as if they knew..... and part of him hoped they did, while another part wondered why they would want him here if they did. He was bad, wasn't he? Wasn't that what Jake had told him would happen?  
  
As he thought, the sound of the lake lapping against the shore and the warmth of the sun lulled him into a deep sleep. And then The Nightmare came.  
  
~Hunter, at 4 years old, was lying down in his bed. He had his favorite blanket, the one with the snakes on it. He was inbetween wakefulness and sleep, when the door to his room opened, casting a faint light into his barely open eyes.  
  
Blinking owlishly, he sat up and squinted at the dark figure in his doorway. "Wha...? Jake, is that you?" He propped himself up in his twin bed, and rubbed his fists over his eyes.  
  
"Shhhh," came a slightly deeper voice. His brother was tall, in his opinion. At 13, Jake's looks were the exact opposite of Hunter's. His dark brown hair was slightly long and curly, his eyes a dull brown. "Just stay quiet. Mom and Dad won't be back until Sunday night."  
  
Jake came closer, his voice level, his eyes glinting. Hunter had a bad feeling. "It's okay. This is gonna feel really really good," he started, letting his fingers glide down Hunter's small frame, down to his groin. "But if you tell Mom and Dad, they're gonna blame you. You'll be put in a small room and they'll never let you out."  
  
His voice was still level, but his breathing had become faster, as he slipped Hunter's underwear off. Jake stroked him, making him feel things. He felt bad, but good too. "Wha-what are you d-doing?" his voice squeaked out. Jake chuckled and slipped his hand to Hunter's small bottom, thrusting a dry finger inside him.  
  
Hunter gasped, and started to cry. He didn't know what to do. 'Mom and Dad will send me away..... But it hurts, it hurts,' his mind repeated the last two words over and over.  
  
Jake climbed over him, and Hunter felt him, large and hard against his buttocks. Taking his finger away, Jake thrust into Hunter, while Hunter's muffled screams went into his hand. When Jake was done, he took some Kleenex and cleaned the blood and semen from his now withered penis and Hunter's sore bottom.  
  
Hunter was no longer crying. He lay quiet, pulling his knees to his chest and rocking. "Remember what I said," came Jake's voice from the doorway. "You tell, and you'll be a bad boy. They'll lock you up." And with that, the door slammed. ~  
  
_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-  
  
Cam was looking for Hunter, knowing why, and was embarrassed by it in spite of himself. 'Every time I think I'm going to murder him, he smiles and I feel like melting. That isn't a good thing. Now he's late for training, and I feel like murdering him. Let's hope he doesn't smile,' he thought to himself. It was ironic, in his opinion, that the one who irritated him the most had that power over him.  
  
He frowned as he came upon the lake, and saw Hunter at it's shore. He seemed to be curled in a ball, and Cam wished he had a clue as to why he would be in a position that seemed so ... vulnerable.  
  
As he became more aware of Hunter, Cam heard him whimpering, and saw that he was shivering. He was shocked that anything could make the crimson ranger look that scared. He crouched down beside him, and put a hand on Hunter's shoulder.  
  
"Hey man, wake up," he stated clearly, nearly leaping in surprise when Hunter came shooting up, a look of hurt, terror and shame in his eyes. Cam was confused, but he said in a soothing voice, "Hunter, it's Cam. C'mon, look at me. You're awake, it was just a nightmare."  
  
Hunter shook his head, blinking his eyes widely and trying to force his breathing to regulate. "Hey, thanks for waking me up," he said quietly, clearing his throat when it wavered. He could feel Cam's gaze on him, and didn't want it there. When he saw Cam reach out to pat his shoulder, he felt a bolt of fear, and jerked in the opposite direction. A feeling of guilt took it's place as he saw the hurt flash in the samurai ranger's eyes.  
  
"What happened?" Cam asked, his voice still quiet, still soothing. Seeing Hunter's fear was making him act out of character ... but then, seeing the crimson ranger afraid was out of character in itself.  
  
"N-nothing," Hunter lied, not wanting to talk about it. He was scared that if he said something, the memories would come back faster. What Cam would think of him ranked right after that though. "What time is it?"  
  
Cam shook his head, and replied, "That's why I was looking for you. You're late to practice."  
  
Hunter let out an oath, and sat up. Cam stood, and offered a hand. "Come on. I have to practice too."  
  
"Thanks man. I can't believe I fell asleep. I don't usually do that," Hunter replied, running his fingers through his sandy locks. 'I hope that doesn't happen again, where people can see me. Especially... well, nevermind,' he thought to himself.  
  
They walked silently back to Ninja Ops, absorbed in their thoughts. Finally, they reached their destination, and silently agreed not to talk about it.  
  
Tori noticed something was wrong as soon as she saw them walk into the room. Even more so when Cam avoided looking at her. 'What's eating him?' she asked herself. Sighing, she shook her head, and got to work.  
  
Alright, that's all for the revised version of chapter one. I feel that this fic will be more realistic insofar as the nature of Hunter's problem. I hope you liked it. I'll try to revise chapter 2 as soon as possible. Blessed be, Chero 


	2. Revelations

A/N: Thank you all for sticking with me through the revamp. Thanks to Teal and Becky for encouraging me to keep going with this. Always there. You both rock! Brennie Sue-chan, I don't think I could have gotten through my parents knowing about my abuse and the counseling without you there, always telling me that it wasn't my fault. You're like a big sister to me. Love you all so much!  
  
Maybe Someday  
  
Chapter Two: Revelations  
  
Hunter frowned at the floor in Storm Chargers. When a hand came down on his shoulder, he nearly jumped out of his skin. "Yeah, hey Kel, what's up?"  
  
"We have more inventory coming in this afternoon, around 2. Just wanted to let you know," her brisk way of speaking and her bright smile picked his mood up ... slightly. "Are you alright? You seem kind of spacey today."  
  
He forced himself to smile, "I'm fine, really. Just kind of tired." 'Tired since I don't sleep anymore,' he thought, thinking about not thinking about the nightmares.  
  
They had started to come more frequently, and it was freaking him out. He didn't remember much before his parents adopted him, but he had a sinking feeling that his dreams were more than dreams.  
  
Picking up another box, Hunter checked around to see if anything was out, so he could pick it up while in the stock room. He had been avoiding everyone for days, and hoped that they didn't pay it any more mind than the last time he was, as Tori put it, brooding. His lips quirked as he remembered the look on Cam's face. Disgust, as usual. Thinking about the Samurai Ranger's expressions led his thoughts to the expression he'd had when Hunter awakened from his nightmare. Wincing, he stacked the boxes, got out a marker to label them, and grabbed some helmets for the rack.  
  
Blake had been watching his brother for some time now, wondering what was wrong. He knew Hunter better than anyone, and while he was used to the usual bouts of silence, it was getting rediculous. His attention was shifted, however, when he saw Tori walk in and greet Dustin. Her eyes scanned the shop, lighting on him. A smile curved her lips, and she walked over. He felt nervous, but he always felt that way around her.  
  
"What's up?" she asked, tucking her thumbs into her pockets. Her eyes were smiling up at him, and he felt breathless.  
  
"Nothing really. Just the usual," he paused. "Well, wait, I was wondering if you know what's wrong with Hunter? He won't talk to me." He felt hurt because of it, but tried not to let it show.  
  
She frowned. "He's been pretty quiet. Cam has too, for that matter." She gave a half-smile, "That's more unusual from him than it is from Hunter. I was planning on cornering him later at Ninja Ops."  
  
Blake nodded, his eyes shooting to the floor, taking in her bare midriff as they did. Tori spoke up. "I'll talk to you later. I'm going to find Cam, alright?"  
  
He nodded. "See ya."  
  
____________________________________________________________  
  
At Ninja Ops, Cam was staring blankly at the monitor, replaying the scene from the day before. 'He looked so scared. It was hard seeing him like that,' he thought to himself, worried. He hadn't wanted to upset his friend more by asking about it. He'd been noticing his fatigue, except when he was morphed, and now he knew why.  
  
He shook his head, and went back to work, tapping his fingers on the keys as he tried to recalibrate one of the zords. He checked the repairs from the last battle, and saw that they were complete. He couldn't believe how distracted he was nowadays.  
  
Tori walked into the room, and saw him shake his head. "Hey, Cam," she called out, smiling when he craned his head around to look at her.  
  
His smile was small, but there. "Hey, Tor, how are you?"  
  
"Alright, thanks. What's been going on? Lately you've been quiet, and for you that's pretty rare," she said, feeling that she might as well get to the point. She walked over and sat on the table.  
  
Cam's eyes flickered with worry, and then the shutters were down again. "I'm fine. Just been a little tired, with all the battles, and the zords needing some new adjustments."  
  
Tori smiled, "Cam, come on. You can talk to me. You're one of the most talented multi-taskers I know."  
  
His shoulders slumped. "It's about Hunter. Something happened the other day, and I'm not sure he wants me to spread it around." He saw her eyes flash with hurt. "Tori, I don't mean you'd tell anyone. I mean, I don't think he wanted even me to know, let alone anyone beyond me. I don't really know much either."  
  
Tori steepled her fingers, and leaned her elbows onto her knees. "I wouldn't tell anyone. I was just worried about you, and now I'm worried about both of you. If you're worried, please ask him what's wrong. You don't have to tell me or anything, just ask so he has someone."  
  
Cam let out a snort. "Yeah, and he really wants 'someone' to be me." His eyes weren't as sarcastic as his words. She cocked her head to the side and looked at him closely. He felt himself blushing, and looked down.  
  
"Cam ... Are you- I mean, uh," she stuttered, unsure of how to ask the question. When she saw his blush deepen, she just waited.  
  
"Yeah, Tor, I'm gay," he said softly. He closed his eyes and rubbed his hands over his face. Tori sat there blinking for a minute, and then made a comment that had him sitting up straight in his chair.  
  
"You say that like it's a really bad thing. Like you did something wrong," she was shaking her head. "Cam, it's not like you can help it. I mean, I like you the way you are. Whatever way that happens to be."  
  
Cam smiled at her. "Thanks, Tori. Just, please, don't let anyone know. Least of all him." He didn't need to tell her which 'him' he meant. He saw the mischievious smile spread over her face.  
  
"You have a crush on him!" she exclaimed, her eyes shining. She laughed out loud when his blush came back. "I must say, I can't fault your taste. Okay, now that I know that, please talk to him. Not about that, but about what's wrong with him. You're his friend too." She shrugged. "You never know."  
  
Cam shook his head, and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, right. What are the chances? Oh, maybe slim to none?"  
  
The pretty blue wind ranger grinned. "Now, there's the Cam we all know and love!" He shook his head again, and turned back to his terminal.  
  
"I have work to do, Tori. Go play with the brother you have a crush on," he said, laughing for the first time that day when she smacked him upside the head.  
  
Cam let the work absorb him for a couple more hours, before he had to face a conversation he wasn't looking forward to.  
  
________________________________________________________________  
  
He was sitting at the lake again. It was one of the more peaceful places he'd been going to, and it helped him center himself. He remembered the lake near his old home, before his parents had died. Before it was just him and Blake.  
  
'They must have known,' he thought, and frowned at the idea. 'Jake ... was my biological brother? Or was he from a foster family? I wish I knew.' His head fell back as he closed his eyes, trying to remember the feel of his dreams. Sweat popped out on his skin as he felt himself pale with the terror he'd apparently known before.  
  
'Scared, hurting, brother, alone,' came the impressions, full-force. He clenched his teeth and forced himself to come back to the present. He wiped the tears that had leaked out of his eyes off his face. He was glad he had, because looking up, he saw Cam headed his way.  
  
He let his eyes focus on a ripple in the lake, and said nothing. He heard the ground shift when Cam sat next to him, looking out at the lake as well.  
  
"What's going on, Hunter?" the green ranger asked softly. "What happened?" He picked up a smooth stone, tossing it from one hand to the other to give himself something to do. He stayed quiet, until Hunter was ready to answer him.  
  
"Something ...," he paused. "Something happened to me, before I came to be adopted. I don't really remember much. You woke me up fro-" Hunter broke off, clearing his throat. "You woke me up from a nightmare, a memory. A really bad one." His voice had gone down to a whisper, as the pain cut through him.  
  
He felt Cam's arm go around him, and now, instead of pain, there was fear. Fear that was so illogical, he stiffened automatically to shift away.  
  
Cam felt hurt go through him, and shut his eyes quickly. He opened them again, and saw that Hunter was gagging. He didn't touch him at all this time, but made comforting sounds, the sounds he just barely remembered his mother making.  
  
Hunter's face was wet with a sheen of sweat and tears. He cursed. "Why does this keep happening!" he yelled, feeling a deep, deep shame that baffled him.  
  
Cam took a deep breath, bracing himself to ask the next question. "Hunter ... what happens in your nightmares?"  
  
Hunter's eyes slammed shut. "I- I don't know. My ... I only get certain impressions, and then he- he ... Dammit! I think that before I was adopted, and before I came to know my parents, and Blake, I was raped... repeatedly. B-by someone who I think was my brother. I was really young," he rushed on, wanting it overwith, "and my parents then were gone. And he made me... do, just do, a lot of things, before. I don't know, maybe these are just bad dreams." His voice was hoarse, and he whispered, "I hope these are just bad dreams. But I don't think they are."  
  
Cam felt helpless, and angry, and incredibly sad. "I really don't know what to say, Hunter. Nothing I can say could possibly do anything to help, I don't think. But I want you to know that I'm here, and you don't have to worry about me telling anyone. I just know that your brother, and the rest of the team, and- and I, are worried about you. We were before, but at least now I know why. Dad might know what to do, because I know I don't." His voice tapered out. He was now unsure of whether he'd helped or harmed the crimson ranger by asking him to tell.  
  
Hunter grunted and sighed. "Cam, you helped. I guess I needed to get that out. I don't know if I want Blake to know. Or any of the others. But I'll talk to Sensei." He boosted himself up, and this time offered Cam his hand.  
  
They brushed their uniforms off, and walked back to Ninja Ops, now just a little closer than before. They had no way of knowing that the worst was yet to come.  
  
Alright everyone, I hope chapter 2 was good. I hope it touched you. Anyhow, please review and let me know what you think. Blessed be, Chero 


	3. Research and History

Hey everyone! I hope you liked chapter 2. Thanks for reviews! Please review this chappie too!! Peggy, Becky, B-chan.... I love all three of you! Thanks for the never ending support as I work my way through. Frostygirl, I appreciate the help! Kaiyote, thanks for dropping in to let me know you like my work. ^_^  
  
Maybe Someday  
  
Chapter Three: Research and History  
  
Hunter was sitting on the table of Ninja Ops when Cam got back from Storm Chargers the next afternoon. He'd wondered where Hunter was. 'Man, I wish I could help him more. It's really not fair, what happened to him. Let's hope he doesn't make me want to murder him again. It's hard to feel rage and pity for the same person at the same time. Then again... Hunter is certainly unique.'  
  
"Hey," he said, not sure where to go with it, but plunging on anyhow. "Did you talk to Dad?" Scratching the back of his head, he sat at his desk, with the chair facing Hunter.  
  
Hunter shook his head. "Not yet. I don't know if I'm ready to. I mean, what do I say? 'Hey, I've been having nightmares, please help.'? I don't think so."  
  
Cam took a deep breath. "Well, you could always say that you've been having flashbacks and that you think you're a victim of incest." Hunter gave him a wide-eyed look, and he blushed. "What can I say? I looked it up on the net."  
  
"Y-you mean there are other people out there who go through this?" the crimson rager asked, and could only imagine the horrors of more people like the 'Jake' in his dreams.  
  
Cam nodded. "Thousands of people, Hunter, who know what it's like. Some have been victimized by the same person. Some haven't. Incest can be by someone you know and trust, but aren't necessarily related to. It doesn't even matter how old you are. If you trust someone, and they do that, you're a victim." He cleared his throat. "It's not always brutal for some people. You and Blake have computers, right?" At Hunter's nod, he continued. "Well, there are message boards online, and chat rooms, and even just sites in general, to help incest survivors. If you want, look it up at home, and it might help you."  
  
Hunter's eyes were unfocused. "W-why did you do this for me, Cam?" He was thunderstruck by his teamate's kindness. He wasn't sure how he felt about it. Butterflies and dread curled into a ball in his stomach.  
  
Cam's eyes held an unfamiliar, but comforting, affection. "Because you're you. And I wasn't sure if you were going to be comfortable talking to Dad. So, I researched it before I went to sleep. I was looking for you earlier to tell you, but I couldn't find you, so I came back here." He had to force himself not to blush at Hunter's scrutiny.  
  
'"Because you're you." isn't the normal, "Well, hey, you're a friend." response. But I think I'll take what I can get,' Hunter thought, and shrugged. "Well, thanks. You were right. I don't even know how I told you."  
  
Cam looked down. "Well, I'm glad you did. I hope the info online helps you. I'm here when you need me." He repeated what he'd said the day before. With a half smile, he changed the subject. "I need to get more work done. So, if you'd like to stay, you're welcome to."  
  
Hunter snorted, grateful for a way out of their somber discussion. "Nah, man, I think I'll go to the track." With raised eyebrows and a glance at the terminal, he said, "Well, hope you have fun!" With a quick grin at Cam's usual 'I can't believe how immature you are' roll of the eyes, he jogged out of Ninja Ops. But rather than head to the track, he headed home. He had some research to do.  
  
Signing on as CrimsonBiker250, he checked his email, frowning as he saw that Blake had emailed him. 'Have I been avoiding him so much that we resort to talking online? Nah, couldn't be,' he thought. Opening the email, he read:  
  
::Bro, what's been going on? I've noticed that something's been wrong. You can talk to me, or not, it's your choice. I respect either one. Love ya, I'm going to see if I can find Tori. Later!::  
  
Hunter smiled, then hit the reply button. With a hunt-n-peck typing style, he slowly wrote back.  
  
::Blake, hey. I'll just bet you went to find Tori. You should ask her out, I mean, she's totally into you. Unless of course-:: he stopped, and grinning widely, finished the sentence. ::- you're chicken. Anyhow, I can't tell you about what's wrong yet. It's not anything really good, and it scares the hell out of me. But it's from my past. The past before Mom and Dad adopted me. Let me work it out, and then I'll tell you about it. Alright? Love you too. Hope you found her. Later!::  
  
He stretched his arms upward, and looked at the screen with trepidation. 'Guess there's nothing else to do but to do it,' he thought, scowling. 'I can't believe I'm doing this... I don't want to do it.'  
  
Going to the search bar, he entered the words 'Incest Survivors', and waited for the page to load. Forcing himself to stay calm, he scanned the list the search engine had some up with. 'Gotta start somewhere. But I don't know if I want to,' he admitted to himself.  
  
He clicked on one of the choices, and read as much as he could. ____________________________________________________________________  
  
Tori walked back to her towel, finished with her surfing for the day. She felt tired, and worried still about Cam and Hunter. She sped her pace when she saw Blake sitting on her towel, and a familiar warmth went through her when she realized he'd been watching her. She liked him so much, and smiled involuntarily. He waved, and she jogged the rest of the short distance.  
  
"Hey, Blake," she gushed, and set her board down as he made room for her to sit. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her, but tried to keep them focused above her neck. Tried was the operative word there.  
  
"Hey Tor.... How were the waves?" he asked, and slipped his shades on so that his roaming eyes wouldn't show so much. He felt the draining worry leave him as he let her friendly chatter roll over him.  
  
Tori frowned, seeming to sense his relaxation and remembered what would have him tense in the first place. "How are things with you and Hunter?" she asked, in a rather abrupt change of subject.  
  
He sighed, and thought for a minute. "I just really worry when he doesn't talk to me. I mean, we always talk to each other. If something was going on, I'd be the first to know about it. From what you said the other day, Cam's the first to know this time." He stopped, and rubbed his forehead, letting his frustration and hurt show as he yanked of his glasses.  
  
Tori hesitated, and then rubbed his arm a little, saying at the same time, "Blake, has it ever occured to you that he would want an objective ear before he went to someone who's opinion and love mean the world to him? It may be that things aren't as bad as he thinks, and he'll come to you sooner. But you know him. What would he do first, try to fix it on his own some, or team up?"  
  
Blake tried to smile, but didn't pull it off. It just hurt too much. "We used to go to each other. We used to count on each other." He took a deep breath. "Don't worry Tor, I'll just leave him alone for another couple of days. After that, I'll talk to him. Just-- well, just to get it out in the open that I'm worried. That I care. I sent him an email earlier, but I want to talk to him in person. You know?"  
  
Tori gave him a one-armed hug, and replied, "Yeah, I know. I won't worry ... Or, I'll try not to. I can't--" She broke off, and continued in a softer voice. "I can't seem to help it when it comes to you."  
  
Blake pulled back, and looked at her for a minute. He felt a tug in his lower abdomen, and gave her a full hug, not ready, or just too nervous to kiss her. He wasn't that sure yet, but he felt better about it. She always seemed to make everything feel better lately. ______________________________________________________________________  
  
Cam leaned back in his chair, his arms stretched over his head as he tried to get the kinks out. 'Man, between battles, managing Ninja Ops, and worrying about the love of my life, I don't seem to HAVE much of a life. Gee, what else is new?' he wondered sarcastically. He nearly jumped out of his seat as his father flipped onto the desk in front of him.  
  
"Cam, I'm worried about you. You're working too hard," Kanoi commented, noting the dark circles under his son's eyes.  
  
Cam finished stretching, and replied, "Dad, remember what happened the last time you said that?"  
  
Kanoi chuckled, "Yes, but I also recall you taking more of an interest in your own life. Too much work is very taxing on the body, as well as the state of mind."  
  
Cam shook his head, "Alright Dad, I'll go see what Shane and Dustin are up to, I guess. Thanks." He didn't sound very grateful, but he sent his dad a slight smile and made his way out.  
  
With a sigh, Kanoi made his way back to his hopefully temporary home. He worried deeply for his son. His growing lethargy and constant working wasn't healthy. He knew this, and went to pray and meditate. ______________________________________________________________________  
  
"Is that my camera you're using again Dustin?" Cam called out, making his way to the area where Shane was pulling off tricks that he'd always wished he had the talent for.  
  
"Dude, um- you see, I know I promised never to use it again, but I'm still saving up for one of my own, and well, Shane wanted to-" Dustin was cut off as Shane stopped and had a reply.  
  
"Hey, don't blame me for that! You just can't keep your hands off his camera! Welcome back to the land of the living, Cam." the red ranger carried his skateboard over and unclasped his helmet.  
  
Cam rolled his eyes, "Gee, thanks. Dustin, just don't break it, or lose it. You seem to have a knack for doing one or both." He shrugged as sweat trailed down his back. He felt like someone was watching him, but couldn't seem to find anyone else in the park taking much of an interest in them. "I'm just going to sit and watch, if you don't mind. Dad wanted me to get out for awhile, but now that I am, I'm not sure what to do."  
  
Dustin and Shane traded looks. "Sure, man, feel free. If you want, I'll teach you how to use one of these," Shane held up his skateboard.  
  
"Not now, but thanks," Cam deferred, and sat on the bench. Shane went back to the half-pipe and Dustin followed, handling the camcorder much more carefully now that Cam was there to watch.  
  
Cam wasn't paying much attention to either of his fellow rangers. He didn't give himself much of a chance to think before, but now that he was out and there was no more work to be done, he let the thoughts and emotions of the past week roll over him. 'At least, it seems like it's been a week,' he thought.  
  
Except for looking the different sites up online related to Hunter's particular situation, he only thought of the crimson thunder ranger at night. Not always about comforting him either, but that was his main focus. While he'd felt this way almost from the start, he didn't want to alarm Hunter, or worse, drive him away. 'When did my life get so complicated? Get up, learn, train, go to sleep. Now, it's get up, train, train, work at Ninja Ops, work at Ninja Ops some more, battle Kelzaks and monsters, and worry about Hunter for the night rather than sleep. Well, at least I'm consistant,' he considered. He was so deep in thought, he didn't notice that Shane and Dustin had stopped taping and were getting their things together.  
  
"Yo, Cam! Why don't you go to sleep or something? It's starting to get late," the yellow ranger called to him, and he tried to get his eyes to focus. He admitted to being tired, but only to himself.  
  
"I'll go home in awhile. Thanks Dustin. See you guys later," Cam picked himself up, and managed to walk along fairly well. He wasn't lost in thought anymore, but his emotions weren't holding up very well.  
  
He wished he could tell his dad about his ... orientation. He'd figured it out when he was younger, and felt no attraction whatsoever towards girls. It'd confused him for a few months, well, if he was truthful, more than a few months. Then he'd seen Jamie. Jamie had been a good student at the acadamy, taller than Cam, with curly blond hair and sea green eyes. That's when he'd finally realized that he was gay.  
  
He felt bad, remembering the time when Jamie had asked another student out, a girl. The samurai ranger stopped by the pond, and threw in a few stones. He'd never really talked much to the other students, Cam realized. He didn't want anyone to know, and he'd been so unsure of himself that he just stayed in the background, doing his schoolwork, helping his dad however he could, and practicing.  
  
He sat there for a couple more minutes, and finally giving in, went back to Ninja Ops, to his room, and to his bed. 'Hopefully this time I'll get some sleep,' he told himself. ____________________________________________________________________  
  
Tori pulled up to his house, and put the van in park. "I had a good time today," she said, smiling at him. They'd spent the day discussing various things, school, motocross, surfing. She didn't remember all of it, but then, she'd gotten distracted by the way the wind ruffled his hair, the way he'd felt when he hugged her, his smile, his voice. She loved listening to him talk.  
  
Blake put his hand over the handle of the door. "Me too," he said, and tried, as he'd tried all day, to work up the nerve to kiss her. "See you tomorrow?"  
  
Tori nodded, "Of course. I'll drop by Storm Chargers or something." She really wanted to kiss him. What was more, she wanted him to kiss her. His eyes were a warm chocolate brown, and she loved the way he looked at her sometimes. 'But what if I'm just imagining things?' she asked herself.  
  
Blake opened the door, and turned to get out. He paused, and rolled his eyes. 'I need to just do it,' he thought, and not giving himself much time to analyze it, turned towards her again and leaned over.  
  
She met him halfway, letting her lips brush his and feeling the butterflies already in her stomach do aerial maneuvers that could make any pilot jealous. Their lips brushed again, and settled more firmly the third time.  
  
Warmth infused his body, and he brought his hand up to her cheek as he drew a few inches away. "Man, I've wanted to do that for a long time," he said very softly, not wanting to destroy the moment totally.  
  
Tori licked her lips, and felt a blush stain her cheeks. "Yeah, believe me, I've wanted you to do that for a long time," she said in the same tone. When he grinned, she did too, and he let himself out of the van, slamming the door shut, but leaning through the open window.  
  
"I'll see you tomorrow, Tor," he said in a normal voice, and jogged in, turning back when he reached his front porch.  
  
She waggled her fingers at him, put the blue van in drive, and pulled away from the house. She couldn't wait to get home and mark her calendar, or at the very least write it down in her journal. ______________________________________________________________  
  
Blake sighed as he shut the door. He headed for the kitchen, needing a drink, and called out for his brother. "Hunter, you home yet?"  
  
When there was no answer, he headed for his room, putting his soda down on the sandstone coaster that his mom had given him one day. He'd taken it with them when they'd moved here. He sat at his computer, and checked his mail. 'Well, Hunter wrote back today,' he thought, surprised.  
  
As he read the email, he scowled at the reference to his uncertainty of his and Tori's relationship. 'Well, if I wasn't sure before, at least I am now,' he thought, making a mental note to tell his brother of the latest development. He read the rest of the email, and felt more worried now than he had over the past couple of weeks. 'At least he said he'd talk to me, but I wish I knew what he was talking about. Oh well, I'll talk to him when he gets home.'  
  
The navy ranger stretched out on his bed. He tried not to think about what could be wrong with Hunter, tried to just think about kissing Tori finally, and how it made him feel, but he couldn't keep his mind focused on it. He fell into a troubled sleep, waiting for Hunter to get home. _______________________________________________________________  
  
Hunter woke up at 2am, his neck stiff from his head hanging all that time. He'd searched several sites, and found comfort in some. The fact that some mentioned nightmares and having mental blocks of the abuse made him feel-- well, he wasn't sure if it made him feel better or worse. But at least he had something to think about now, besides the nightmares themselves. He rubbed his hands over his eyes, and made his way over to bed, falling in fully dressed and hoping, praying, for no dreams.  
  
Okay, that's it for chapter 3. I hope you guys liked it! Please review! It'll make me happy. Blessed be, Chero 


	4. Confessions

**A/N: Sorry for taking so long. I tried to write whenever I could grab a chance. Hope you like this chapter.**

**Maybe Someday**

**Chapter Four: Confessions**

            Hunter sat by the ocean a couple of days later. He hoped that the email would offset Blake's curiosity for now. He wasn't sure if he could talk about it with someone who's so important to his life. 

            'I hope I don't fall asleep here,' he thought to himself, glad he was alone, and away from where Cam seemed to always find him. Breathing in the smell of saltwater, he leaned back and cleared his mind, as he'd been taught. He relaxed slowly, and let the sound of the waves crashing comfort him.

            A hand came down on his shoulder, and he jerked as a memory came at him like a train. 

~ _Jake was shaking hands with some neighbor or other. He wasn't sure. But as he watched his brother, he saw the charm was turned on high, his eyes weren't flat but looked as though he sincerely was happy to meet them. _

_            Hunter was doing little math problems that the teacher had sent home with him and some spelling words beckoned on the next page. When his brother was excused and the neighbor and their parents were talking, Jake looked at him, his eyes no longer anything but flat and glittering with malice. Hunter felt fear rip through him, but tried to hide his feelings. 'Predators always look for your weaknesses, to know better when to attack,' the quote from a documentary he saw on TV came to him. _

_Jake walked towards him, leaned down, and whispered in his ear, "It's all your fault." Hunter wasn't sure what had prompted the small attack, but he kept himself from shrinking away. 'Says you,' his mind replied, as he turned away to go back to his homework. 'Although, why would he say it if it weren't true?' the thought had occurred to him before, and this time was no different. _~

The flashback was unlike a dream, and came and went in an instant. It was weird, and made him pale, but he tried not to let it show too much. His eyes flicked up to see who had touched him, and he nearly sagged with relief when he saw Tori. 

            He strained for nonchalance. "Hey, Tor, what's up?" From the worried frown on her face, he wasn't pulling it off. If she didn't say anything, he wasn't about to bring it up.

            She was wearing a tank and some shorts, and her hair was braided in an unusual way. She crouched down next to him, and took a deep breath. "I'm worried about you, Hunter. What's more, I know Blake is worried about you too. It's hard for me to see, and usually he's doing pretty well, but he looks like he hasn't slept in a week. Now that I look for it, you look the same way. I wish you'd tell me what's going on. Or him." She paused, and looked at him. His guilty look made her feel bad, but she hoped it made him realize that he had someone who would crawl through hell for him right in his own home.

            "I don't know," he paused. "I don't know if I can tell him this. It's horrible." Cam's words came back to him. _You could say that you're an incest survivor…_

"Hunter, whatever happened, your brother loves you, and he'll be there for you. You know that," she replied, turning back to her compassionate nature to try to comfort him.

            Hunter sighed, and ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "Alright, I'll talk to him at home tonight. It's just a hard subject to deal with. I gotta go, Tori. Thanks." He got up, brushed the sand off of his pants. Tori's troubled gaze followed him as he left. 

            At the skate park, Shane was watching the other guys skate, while he and Dustin sat on the bench. "Have you wondered where everyone's been lately? I mean, if Tori isn't at the beach, she's with Blake. Cam is brooding, and Hunter is avoiding us altogether. Are we missing something?"

            Dustin snorted, "Dude, what could they be hiding? I mean, we're their friends, right? Wouldn't they tell us if it was something major?" 

            Shane shook his head, "I dunno, Dustin. I wish I knew." He got up. "Come on; let's get back to Ninja Ops. We have some sparring to do." As they got up and left, Shane thought more about the state of their friendships with the others, and if there was something big that they _would_ hide. Shrugging it off, he hopped on his board and did some minor tricks along the way. 

            At Ninja Ops, Cam was fiddling with a board from the computer. He rubbed his forehead, trying to make the headache go away, if it ever would. He clenched his teeth, his hand shaking minutely as he tried to transfer a wire. "Damn it!" he hissed when a spark shot out from another wire. 

            "Cam? What has happened?" his father asked from nearby. When he glanced up, his Dad's guinea pig face looked almost disappointed at his outburst. _Oops, he thought. __I guess I shouldn't have said that. He continued to examine the wires. _

            "Just a little glitch Dad, nothing to worry too much about," he said, and then rolled his eyes. "Unless, of course, I can't fix it, but then, there's not much of a chance of that happening."

            Kanoi sighed, and replied, "Son, what has had you so easily upset as of late? I've been worried about you."

            "It's--," he paused, wondering how to word what he was about to say. "It's Hunter." He looked down, feeling the heat trying to climb up his neck. "He's been having some problems lately, and he didn't want me to say anything to anyone. So, now I'm just trying to help him."

            "He trusts you now. I respect his privacy. Is he in danger of some sort?" Sensei inquired, his paws clasped together in front of himself, looking calm but concerned.

            "Not in the way you probably mean. When he wants to tell someone, I'm sure he'll do it. But I don't know if he's ready yet. So now, I wait. And you know just how incredibly patient I am," he concluded wryly. He continued to work on the panel in front of him, and the silence stretched between them.

            Blake paced around the living room. He had tried to practice at the track, but being distracted didn't help his times at all, so giving up, he'd headed home. Now, his thoughts just raced, going back to the email from his brother. 

            _I wonder what could've happened, he thought, and ran his fingers through his hair again. He'd thought about trying to search Tori out, but remembering the last time they'd been together, and the worried looks she'd aimed when she thought he wasn't looking, made him change his mind. _

            He headed towards his room, pausing by Hunter's on the way there. Opening the door and poking his head inside, the navy thunder ranger looked around. The can of soda was on the coaster next to the computer, and he picked it up automatically to throw away. He stared at the blank screen, wondering again what could've possibly happened to his brother that he wasn't willing to share with him. With a heavy heart and his mind trying to think of all the possibilities, he exited the room, carrying the soda can to the garbage. 

            Dustin and Shane showed up at Ninja Ops, arguing about which was better: skateboarding or motocross. The conversation had turned humorous not long after they left the skate park. The tension was too much for both of them to take after everything that had been going on lately. "Hey Cam!" Dustin called out. 

            Cam glanced up, glared through his lashes, and glanced back down. Praying to the gods that the computer would work, he closed the panel, and turned it on, sighing with relief when he saw that everything was working as it should. _If people would stop playing with the computer as if it were a toy, then it probably wouldn't need as much work as I put into it, he thought, irritated his headache almost too much to think through. He took a deep breath, hoping that that would make it lessen. _

            Shane and Dustin bowed to each other, and began to spar while still carrying on the conversation. "Dude, motocross will always be better than skating, that's just a fact," Dustin said, and Shane blocked his kick as he replied, "Then you need a dictionary to tell you what 'fact' means!" 

            Cam shook his head, got up, and moved around them to leave. His thoughts were mixed now that he had nothing to distract him. Hunter had been on his mind, and he wasn't happy about it. He hated the fact that Hunter was in pain, but at the same time, he wished the crimson thunder ranger would get some help. 

            Hunter was walking along the harbor, thinking about not thinking about anything. It wasn't working very well, but it was worth the effort. _What is it with me and water? he asked himself amusedly. _

            He made his way along slowly, wanting to postpone going home as long as he possibly could. While he was walking, however, someone bumped into him from the opposite direction.

            "Sorry," he said automatically, but after that all Hunter could do was stare, his skin going hot and cold as pure terror ripped through him with a memory.

~_Jake was glaring at him, a piece of brick grasped in his hand. "I swear you little dipshit, if you say one word I will bash your skull in." Hunter, 6, cowered in the corner of the wall on the porch. He wished someone knew now. _Even if they did put me in a small room, at least I wouldn't have this to deal with_, he thought, a trail of sweat tickling it's way down his back.~_

            Hunter came back to himself, the guy he saw a few feet away now. "Jake?" he said in a harsh whisper. "Yeah?" the crimson ranger heard, and started walking in the opposite direction before the guy, Jake, could realize who he was. 

            Hunter jogged until he reached his home, and slammed the door shut behind him. _I need to tell him. If Jake is here … I'm going to need all the help I can get, he thought, and headed for Blake's room. _

            About a second after he knocked, he opened the door, not bothering to wait for a response from his brother. After taking a deep breath, he asked, "Blake, can I talk to you?" When Blake nodded, frowning, Hunter sat down in a chair facing the bed.

            "I—I know you've been worried about me, and I'm sorry I didn't tell you before now," the words rushed out of his mouth. "I-I've been having these really bad nightmares, and it's from before I was adopted by Mom and Dad. And, in these flashbacks, I'm being raped by a guy who I think is my biological brother." He stopped, rubbed his hands over his face. 

            Blake had a look of horror on his face. He couldn't believe that his brother had kept this from him. The rational part of his brain told him that Hunter would've been scared brainless, but he was slightly past that. Now, all he wanted to do was protect his brother. And to do that, he would need to listen, and be there.

            With another deep breath, Hunter continued with the last bit of information from today. "Blake, I think he's here. I think Jake is in Blue Bay Harbor."

**Okay, that is it people! I am so sorry that it's taken me lifetimes to finish this, and I hope you liked this chapter. Please don't forget to review, because it always means a lot to me. Blessed be, Chero**


	5. Storytime and Sunsets

**A/N: This chapter was possibly the hardest I've ever had to write. There is a scene with Jake that is disturbing, so I wanted to warn you ahead of time. I couldn't write it in detail, because as it was, getting into Jake's head is difficult. My nature is the total opposite of his. The scene will be in bold, so you can skip over it if you need to. But I wrote it so you could understand what he is. **

**Maybe Someday**

**Chapter Five: Storytime and Sunsets**

            Cam whirled away from his console. "He's _here_?!" he yelped, his eyes full of worry and annoyance. "Why didn't you tell me this _before now?!" He ran his fingers through his rapidly lengthening hair. _

            Hunter scowled, "Because I didn't know this before last night, that's why." Blake had been really supportive, and he realized that he probably should've told him before this. But, dealing with the task at hand required patience. Patience never had been a virtue of his, but he realized why Cam would be upset.

            Heaving a sigh, Cam whirled back around to the console. "Okay, Hunter, I'm going to try and see if I can find anything out about where you were before you and Blake came to be with your current parents."

            Hunter winced, "Dude, we think of them as our only parents. Not current. Although I don't really remember much about anything before them. At least, I didn't before." His face held pain, and Cam felt bad for causing him to think about it.

            "Hunter, I didn't mean it that way. I know they were your Mom and Dad, but you had to be somewhere before then. I'm just going to get that information," he said, keeping his voice from being too nice. No need letting Hunter _know about his feelings._

            Hunter took a deep breath, "Yeah, I know you didn't. Okay, well, feel free to delve into my past." He gestured towards the computer, and then paused. "Wait, you can find stuff like that?"

            Cam rolled his eyes. "What, do you think I just play with these things and know nothing about how to glean information? The internet makes it child's play." Rolling his shoulders, he got to work after getting Hunter's pertinent information.

             A couple of hours later, he had what he needed. _Man, I feel bad that Hunter lived with this kid_, he thought to himself. Taking a deep breath, he said, "Hunter, I have it."

            Hunter's head snapped up, his eyes cloudy with fatigue from lack of sleep. "What? What did you get?" He got up from his perch on the table, arching his back to get the kicks out. He didn't notice when Cam's eyes followed the movement.

            "Well, you were living with a foster family. You biological parents …," he paused, "were in a car accident when you were around 3. You only went to one foster family before you were adopted by your parents. The foster family you were with had you until you were 8. Their names were James and Katherine Williams. They had one son, Jake Williams. He was 9 years older than you. Apparently, something happened and you broke your leg. At the emergency room, it says that you 'showed a reluctance to be touched by the male doctor'. So, they decided to do an exam, with a female, and they found, well, here you read it." Cam backed away from the computer, a bitter taste on the back of his tongue. 

            Hunter's hands were shaking as he read the facts. They had found old and new scars, surmised that he'd been sodomized, and had immediately found a counselor on the hospital's grounds, along with a social worker. In the report, they said he was reluctant to talk, even once his safety was assured. As he continued to read the report, the sick feeling in his stomach continued to grow worse, until he had to stop. He sat down hard in the chair that Cam had vacated, and stared at the floor with unseeing eyes.

            _I can't believe this. Why did it have to happen to me? What did I ever do to deserve it? Hunter asked himself, feeling hopeless, helpless, and ashamed. He felt like crying, but the tears just wouldn't come. He stood up quickly, and walked out of Ninja Ops, walking as fast as he could without jogging. On the way to his lake, he ran into Blake, who grabbed his arms before he could go further._

            "Hey, bro, what happened? What did Cam find out?" he asked gently, trying not to agitate Hunter any more than he already was. With a comforting squeeze, he led his brother to sit down on the gravel, and listened to what the reports had said.

            "I didn't read all of them, I just- I couldn't," Hunter replied, squirming as if he couldn't keep still. "In essence, I broke my leg when I was 8, wouldn't let the male doctor near me, and they found ...," he paused, wondering how to put it, "scar tissue, old and new. They sent me to a counselor and all this junk. I read the reports. I never said who it was. They investigated the family, but couldn't find anything until they checked Jake's school records, and found that he'd been known to be a bully. I stopped there. I got another memory. He used to kill animals, torture them. Frogs, rats, stray cats and dogs. I saw him a few times, and I think that was one of the only times I saw happiness on his face other than when he was r-raping me." He had a sick look on his face, and he was bone white. 

            Blake felt helpless, yet again. "What can I do, Hunter? What can I do?" he asked with desperation clear in his voice. His eyes had tears in them, and his lips were pulled tight to keep the emotions in.

            Hunter looked at his brother closely, pushing his own feelings back, and said, "Bro, you're already doing everything humanly possible for me. Now, all I can do is deal. With the memories, with what happened. And unfortunately, the only way to do that is wait for them to come." _I hope this helps _him_ deal with this … development_, he thought, realizing that it hurt his baby brother almost as much as it hurt him. 

            "I need to go back and finish it. And we have to find Jake, because he's dangerous. I just pray to all the gods in the sky that he hasn't hurt anyone else like he's hurt me," Hunter said decisively. 

            "You want me to go with you?" the navy thunder ranger asked nervously. His hands were clenched behind his back, his shoulders hunched as if he were protecting himself from an invisible blow. 

            Hunter took in his brother's body language effortlessly, and said softly, "No, it's alright bro. I might need you tonight, after I get done reading anything Cam can come up with." He straightened, taking a deep breath in, holding for a few seconds, and breathed back out slowly, imagining the tension draining out of him.

            _Time to go back to the slaughterhouse, he thought morosely, but refused to tense up before he even got there. When he got back inside Ninja Ops, Cam was halfway asleep with his chin in his hands. Hunter noticed the dark circles under the youth's eyes, and wondered why he didn't notice is before. __It looks like he's not getting anymore sleep than I am. Hunter came to the realization that Cam probably was up trying to find things to help him most nights. _

            "Cam, dude, why don't you grab some shut-eye?" he asked in a clear voice, devoid of any emotion but the tiniest hint of concern making it's way through.

            Cam jerked out of the trance-like state he'd been in. "I'm not tired," came the automatic response. When a yawn broke through right afterwards, Hunter had to fight not to snicker in amusement. 

            "Right. So I guess that means that you're Super Cam, and can go … however many nights you've gone, without a wink of sleep," the crimson ranger replied teasingly. Then he blinked in surprise. _Am I _flirting_ with Cam__? What the hell__ is wrong with me? He's a guy_! _his mind brought to his attention. He could hear the "Well, duh!" that Tori would've interjected at that point, if she had known his thoughts._

            While Hunter argued with himself, Cam looked at him with a worried expression. _He's not gay. He's not gay_, he repeated in his mind. But he tore his eyes from Hunter's quickly and looked down. "As soon as you're finished here," he said, not wanting to leave his friend alone with the reports, "I'll go to sleep." He figured that it was as good a deal as any, and hoped that Hunter wouldn't suspect his feelings, that he would chalk it up to friendship and worry over the situation.

            Hunter nodded, and walked over to the console with trepidation in his every step. _I hope to hell I can feel better about this … soon! he yelled in his mind, and sat down on the chair gingerly, as if he were afraid of breaking something … or that he himself would break down. Steeling himself with another deep breathing exercise, he spun the ball of the mouse and started again._

________________________________________________________________________

            Blake stopped at the beach, his eyes scanning the sand for Tori's towel and gear. When he spotted them, he walked over and plopped down on it, letting the sun soak away some of his tension. He hadn't spoken to his girlfriend (at least, he hoped she considered herself his girlfriend) about Hunter's situation yet, but he knew she was worried about all of them. _The resident "Mother Hen" of the group_, he thought with a smile, his eyes closed, not sensing Tori walking up to him until she sprinkled water on his upturned face. He flinches a little, the saltwater getting into his eyes, but grinned up at a mischievous looking Tori. 

            "So, what's up?" she asked as she lay down next to him on her side, her head supported by a hand. She shivered as he let his fingers trail softly up and down her inner arm, and blushed, smiling up at him, falling into his dark eyes.

            "Huh?" she said, when she hadn't listened to a word he said. Noting the satisfied gleam in his eyes she blushed harder. In retaliation she leaned over and brushed her lips slowly over his cheek, firmly kissing him when she reached his lips, and then making her way softly along the other cheek.

            Blake was blushing and turned on and he knew it. Worse was, Tori knew it too, and her blue eyes were dancing with attraction and laughter. "So, what's up?" she repeated amusedly. 

            _Talk about a cold bucket of water in the fact, he thought wryly, and started on his explanation. "Hunter told me what was wrong last night. He was …," he paused, unable to say exactly what was wrong. _I don't want to betray his confidence_, he cried out in his mind. _But I need to tell someone. I can't be alone in this knowledge.__

            Tori seemed to sense his struggle. "Blake, if you don't feel like you can tell me yet, you don't have to. If you do tell me, I can promise not to mention it to anyone. Ever, or until Hunter decides to tell me and anyone else himself. But you don't have to tell me. I won't push it," she wanted to reassure him as much as she could. 

            Blake smiled at her gratefully. "I do need to tell you, because I care about you, and because I can't tell Hunter some things. I don't want him to feel any worse than he already does." Taking a deep breath, he began.

            "He came home last night in a panic. I mean, seriously wigging out. He just barged into my room and said he needed to talk to me. Apparently, he was," the navy ranger paused with a look of utter sickness on his face, "raped, by his older brother, before he came to be with Mom and Dad. He's been having dreams and, well, he calls them flashbacks when he's awake, of memories from that time. Cam hacked into the police records and the hospital records. Don't ask me how, because I'm not sure. He also got the counselor's report and the file from the adoption agency." He was puzzled over Cam's overwhelming concern for his brother, but dismissed it. 

            Tori felt tears gather behind her eyes, but didn't let them fall. "Rape sucks. It's a horrible experience," she said bitterly. When Blake looked at her with alarm, she said quickly, "No, I've never been raped, but my best friend from middle school…," she stopped, and sniffled, leaning into Blake when he kissed her forehead. She lay down the rest of the way on her back, her head resting on Blake's arm, and told her friend's story.

            "Her name was Jenny, and she and I were both 13," she started, and felt a tear slip down her cheek. Blake kissed it away. "She was walking along the Harbor one night, after spending some time at my house. Her mom had called, and wanted her home, right then. So she went. I didn't even stop her. On her way there, there was a group of guys, in their 20s, who were vacationing in Blue Bay Harbor for a couple weeks. She didn't recognize any of them, she told me that when she was in the hospital. But no one was around. They grabbed at her and took her to the house they were renting, and they held her down there," by this time, Tori was practically sobbing. "They took turns raping her. They kept hitting her and hitting her in between turns, they even used a hammer, or something that could do damage, on her arms and legs, and it shattered her bones. Finally they threw her out of the house, down the steps. Someone found her around 5am, and took her to the hospital. Her mother was pissed off that Jenny hadn't made it home. Even more pissed that she was in the hospital. She screamed about how if Jenny wasn't "such a damn flirt", the guys wouldn't have raped her." The fury in Tori's eyes was palpable, and Blake kissed her forehead again, taking the hand that wasn't being used as a pillow and brushing softly over her face. "Jenny committed suicide a couple of days later, in the bathroom of her room in the hospital. I was the one who found her," the last sentence was said so quietly, Blake could barely hear it.

            "Oh, Tor, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry baby," he whispered, feeling downright guilty for bringing back any bad memories in her. _I could ask myself why she never told me, but I have a pretty good guess as to why_, he thought. 

            "I could've killed her mother then. There was a small funeral, but I still go to her grave every year, on the anniversary of her death. I write something to her every year too," she said, calming down enough to smile a little. "I put it into a little bottle, and as I wait for a wave, I throw it as far as it'll go. I do it because she always loved the merpeople. She used to write little stories about them. I still have all of those." She wiped her tears away, and cuddled closer to Blake. "Thanks. For listening to me."  

________________________________________________________________________

            **Jake was sitting in his house, the same one he'd rented with his gang a few years earlier, drinking 3 fingers of brandy. Now in his late 20s, he was still as handsome as ever. His hair was curly, and his smile was crooked, giving him a boyish look when he smiled that belied his true nature. No one had ever suspected him in anything. He made good grades and was outgoing. He snickered coldly at peoples' inability to look beyond ****the surface. _What idiots I live around, he thought, remembering the pretty young girl he and his friend's had had fun with a few years back. He looked at the small cage across the room, a puppy quivering in fear as he recognized the human looking at him as a predator. The scars on the puppy were long and horrendous. The bottom of the cage was covered in feces and urine. Jake fingered the hammer and grew hard at the thought of the pleasures that lay in store ahead, cackling as he thought, _At least, pleasurable for me_. He headed for the cage._**

**            He opened the cage, and lifted the puppy out gently, not wanting to hurt him yet. He walked over to an examination table, although modified with special buckles to hold anything from animals to small children down. He rubbed himself through his jeans for a second, closing his eyes at the anticipation that drew a shiver down his spine. The puppy was trembling harder, the memory of the table terrorizing him. He tried to scratch at the human, but his grip was firm, and his poor nails were sheared off below the quick. Jake smiled brightly, shackled the puppy in place, and went to work with the hammer.**

________________________________________________________________________

            It was nearing dusk when Shane and Dustin walked into Ninja Ops, laughing about a guy at the skate park who had boasted about his many abilities, and wasn't nearly as good as he thought. However, their laughter faded as they took in the strained silence between Cam, still seated on the table, and Hunter, sitting at the computer practically shuddering out of his skin. They could see the sheen of sweat on his pale fact, and immediately were on their guard.

            "Guys, what's happened? Has someone kidnapped Sensei again?" Shane asked with concern evident in his voice. But somehow he knew that couldn't be it. 

            Cam sighed, and shook his head, "No, Dad's fine. He's somewhere around here, meditating." He turned to look at Hunter, "It's your call Hunter," and that said, he was quiet, his eyes belying the calm in his voice and posture.

            Hunter closed his eyes and swiveled the chair to face them all. The sheen of sweat didn't stop at his face, but had encompassed his whole body, the telltale trails of wet showing on his shirt. It was as if he'd done something he was terrified of.

            "Dude, what happened?" Dustin asked, his voice comforting in its familiarity. He sat down next to Cam on the table, but far enough away that he didn't crowd him. Shane leaned against the wall, his arms folded over his chest.

            Hunter took another deep breath, hoping it would instill some tranquility, but after what he'd read, it didn't work. With his hands shaking, he jumped into the explanation. "I know that I've been pretty scarce, but it's just been really hard dealing with everything. I started having these nightmares a few weeks ago, and they just wouldn't stop. At one point, Cam woke me from one of them. I was freaking out. I told him because I felt he deserved the reason why I was in that condition. I was getting memories from before I came to be with Mom and Dad. From the foster parents who had me. Their son--" he stopped and cleared his throat, nervous about what he was about to say. "Their son raped me, from when I was 3 or so, to when I was 8. I broke a bone, and wouldn't let the doctor near me because he was a guy. That's when they figured out something was wrong. The rest is in the reports I just got finished reading." He wiped his palms on his shorts, and ran his fingers through his hair for the umpteenth time.

            Shane and Dustin were thunderstruck. They traded a horrified look that said, _"Raped?!" But Dustin broke the silence. "I'm really sorry man. I-I don't really know what to say," he said honestly, and Hunter sent a half-smile his way. _

            "It's alright. What can anyone say? But there's something that happened last night that scared me shitless. Enough that I told Blake what'd been happening. And now I'm telling you, and here's why: Jake's here. In Blue Bay Harbor. I don't know where he's staying yet, but Cam said he'd try to find out." He cleared his throat, and stood. "I need to go home. I can't stay here right now, I'm sorry." And with that, he practically jogged out, headed for home.

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            Tori and Blake had lain together on her towel, snuggled together, gaining comfort from the embrace, for an hour at the very least. The sun was setting, and they watched as the sky and clouds turned bright, beautiful colors. 

            "It gives me hope," Tori said gently, bringing a hand up to brush it through his hair, "to see something that beautiful. My mother says that sunset and sunrise are when God gets His paintbrushes out. That He painted the world He gave us with beautiful colors. The butterflies, the flowers, the rainbows symbolizing His promise, and sunset and sunrise. It gives me hope that the good things will balance out the bad. No matter how bad it is, when I look at the world around me, I can take comfort in the fact that every day is new. That I have friends who love me," she ended shyly, looked up at him from beneath her lashes. 

            Blake had his eyes closed for most of her litany, but his eyes opened wide when she uttered the last sentence. He looked down at her, saw her looking at him, and his smile was tender as he bent to kiss her. Their lips met with a kind of innocence, and when they parted, they went back to watching the beautiful sunset, because words weren't needed right then. 

**A/N: I thought I'd give you a lighter ending because of all the angst-filled and disturbing parts. This chapter was very hard on me. I was crying through some of it. I hope you liked this chapter. Please, please, please review! I need them. It helps to motivate me, especially when it comes to writing the next chapter. Blessed be, Chero**


	6. Shane's Revelations and Questions of the...

Maybe Someday

Chapter Six: Shane's Revelations and Questions of the Past

~ _Hunter remembered climbing into his tree, the place he felt safest. He could also get on the roof from here. Now 8, he was getting straight A's in school. It made Jake mad though, so he toned it down, got some B's and C's in there. He was quiet. The students considered him weird. Oh well, __he thought, fuck them. What do they know? __With that in his mind, he didn't notice Jake climb up underneath him. He should've sensed him there. "Shit!" he hissed as Jake's strong hand pushed him out of the tree. He remembered landing on his feet, hearing and feeling a great Crack! _From his leg, and then the rest was fuzzy. He remembered Jake kicking him on his way to get his parents. "You know, I saw him in the tree, and he was reaching for something, I didn't see what, and he just slipped out!" Jake exclaimed in a voice that sounded properly surprised and anxious. _He's so good at that__, Hunter remembered thinking. He woke up on the way there, and the grin Jake sent his way couldn't be described as anything but feral. With a fuzzy head, he had no problem with the pretty girl nurse person putting him on the usually uncomfortable bed. But when a tall man who looked like an older version of Jake reached with the stethoscope to check his breathing, he yelled out, and scooted so far, so frantically, he fell off the bed. "Aahhh!" he screamed as his broken leg hit the floor. When the doctor reached to pick him up, a whimper worked its way out of his throat and he pushed himself into a corner. He hadn't even thought about what he was doing, just of protecting himself. He'd always tried to protect himself from Jake. But the more he struggled and cried out, the more Jake enjoyed himself. So, he learned to struggle without crying out. Now, between the pain in his leg and the piercing headache, his former walls were crumbling down. His head was pounding again, and his vision was getting darker. Even while he tried to force himself awake, he knew he wouldn't succeed. ~_

            Hunter surged up from his bed with a gasp. As his breathing slowed, he swung his legs over to the side and stood up; grimacing when his boxers were molded to his legs, and stripped them off. _Great, another memory. Gee, I wonder what spurred this one on,_ he thought sarcastically. Tossing the soaked clothes and sheets into the corner of his room, he walked to the bathroom to bath. As he was sudsing up the washcloth, he wondered yet again why it had to be him. _But then again, why not me? What if some other kid was spared what I went through because I went through it?_ he questioned, and finished his shower in a hurry. 

            He got out of the bathroom, a towel around his waist and a troubled expression on his face. He got out the coffee bean grinder, and ground out his own beans, double-checking the bag to make sure it was decaf. _No use drinking caffeinated coffee when I want to sleep, he thought wryly, and dumped the grounds into the filter, poured some water in to boil, and waited for the coffee machine to work its magic. __There's nothing like a good cup of coffee, he reminisced, remembering the late night talks he and his Dad would have over cups of vanilla coffee. He felt tears prick at his eyelids and tried to think about other things._

            'Other things' seemed to consist of Cam, his brother's relationship with the blue wind ranger, and his nightmares. Since the latter didn't sit well with him, and he _did_ want to get back to sleep again sometime that night, and thinking of the samurai ranger got the butterflies he didn't want to admit he had doing aerial maneuvers, he decided to think on how best to tease his little bro. 

            _He makes it so__ incredibly easy to tease, he thought with a chuckle. __He blushes and gets that dopey expression on his face whenever she's mentioned, and may the gods help anyone if she comes around. He grinned at the thought of his brother and Tori together, and the warm feeling it gave him, the reassured feeling, made him feel better._

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            Cam felt the wind brush his hair away from his face, and sighed in contentment. It was his night off, or so he told himself. He winced in guilt as he thought of how much his father had wanted him to stop working, at least for a little while. To tell the truth, and he only did this to himself, and then only when it was comfortable, he was getting sick of working 24/7. _Hopefully I'll get some sleep tonight, he thought to himself. The unease he kept feeling when Hunter entered his thoughts was back, and he wondered if it wasn't his inner ninja telling him something. __I do seem to have that feeling every time he has another nightmare, memory, flashback, or whatever word they're using now, he realized, and wasn't sure the idea set well with him._

            "Oh well, what am I supposed to do about it? Force the feelings to stop?" he asked himself out loud. He watched the moon ripple on the water's surface, listened to the wind and night animals move about the trees. This served to calm him, being one with his home. He'd always loved this place. He used to wish that he remembered more of his mother, but now more than that, he wished for peace. Peace for Hunter, peace for Blake and Tori, who worried about Hunter… peace for himself. He had an inkling that Hunter never had been and never would be into guys. But even with his feelings for the crimson thunder ranger, he wanted the best for him, with no strings attached.

            He felt a presence at his back, and turned to look. He thought he saw a shimmer in the air, and frowned, but turned back towards the water, brushing it off as nothing. What he didn't see was the form of a beautiful woman with long black hair and warm brown eyes. His mother smiled sadly upon her little boy, who wasn't so little anymore. With a soft caress to the back of his head, she faded slowly away.

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            Dustin watched the waves from his back porch, his thoughts racing around. Whatever anyone decided to think about him, he wasn't stupid, and he did happen to have a brain. The news from earlier that day haunted him, and he wondered how Hunter had come to be the cool person he was with a past like that.

            _Probably because he didn't remember it, although on some level he must have known, he reminded himself. Rape wasn't a subject that was new to him. He remembered vaguely a girl who'd been raped a few years back. But while the subject wasn't new, it was hard for him to have it hit so close to home, with people he cared about. __Did his Mom and Dad know? he wondered, and drew his curly hair from his face absently. _

            "Waldo?" his mother called out. "Are you alright dear? It's awfully late, you should go to bed." With that parting urge, she shut the sliding glass door, and left him be. He sat there for a few more minutes, feeling a minor annoyance that his parents still called him Waldo. _I feel like I should be in a Where's Waldo? comic. Who names their kid Waldo anyway?_ He asked himself, and made his way to his bedroom, trying not to think about anything, because if he did, he wouldn't sleep at all. 

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            **Jake deposited the limp, bloody body of the puppy back in the cage. He heard a whimper as the sting of urine hit the many lesions on the puppy's bruised form, and a smile graced his face. He felt better now that the puppy was near death. It was an orgasmic experience, in his opinion, to see any creature at the precipice of death, especially if they were in a lot of pain. _At any rate,_ he thought, _I need to figure out just who it is who recognized me._ He recalled the scene at the harbor, and felt confident that he could handle any sort of threat to his freedom. _Whoever the hell it is, they'd better watch out, a cold, wicked smile curved his lips, __because the bogeyman's in town. With thoughts of more torture in his head, and pictures of the abused pup, he went to bed, unzipped his pants, and fondled his erection as he lay down._**

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            Blake blinked his eyes and squinted at the clock. _It's __3am__? he asked himself. He smelled the coffee and padded his way down the hall. He could see his brother's head bent over his coffee mug, and opened the cabinet to get out his own mug. "Have another one?" he asked quietly. When Hunter grunted, Blake turned and watched his brother closely. "What to talk about it?" he asked just as quietly. _

            "It was of the last day I was with them. It wasn't an accident that broke my leg," Hunter murmured. Blake patted his brother on the back and stayed quiet. The navy ranger turned back around and fixed his coffee, then crossed to the opposite side of the table. His eyes gave Hunter the go-ahead for the rest of his memory.

            "He pushed me out of a tree. I was in it because it felt relatively safe. He came up behind me. Damn it! I should've felt him there. But I didn't. He pushed me out, and I broke my leg. On the way to play 'concerned brother' to my parents, he kicked me, and then I was taken to a hospital. The doctor was a man. I was so freaked, and my mind was so fuzzy, rather than played it cool, pretending I was alright, I backtracked so fast that I fell off the bed. I hit my head hard on the linoleum, and then my leg hit the floor pretty hard. I passed out at that point, and then I woke up," he paused for a second, and said, "Remember when Dad used to talk to us over coffee? It always made me tired. I was hoping it would put me to sleep tonight. I wish Mom and Dad were still here." He sounded wistful, and then he looked at Blake for perhaps the first time since he'd appeared. "Do you think they knew about what'd happened to me?" 

            Blake contemplated his cup for a moment. "I think they knew. I don't really remember before you were here. But I was glad you were once I got used to the idea. But knowing Mom and Dad, they knew. They were ninjas, like Sensei, and he seems to know everything. Well, except for computers," he joked, trying to cheer Hunter up.

            Hunter smiled for the first time that night. "Yeah, Sensei should leave the computers to Cam, that's his area of expertise. But you're right, Mom and Dad probably knew. What would they do? I mean, Jake is _here. In Blue Bay Harbor." With a sigh, he downed the rest of his coffee and put his mug in the sink. "I'm going to try and get a little more sleep. Thanks bro." With a half-smile, he bade his brother good night, and walked slowly to his room. __Man, what am__ I going to do? I wish Mom and Dad were here to tell me, he thought as he fell back on his bare mattress. He closed his eyes, and tried to go to sleep._

            A few hours later, dawn had spread rosy tendrils across the sky, and Hunter's communicator went off. _"We've got some activity at the building on 6th,"_ came Cam's tired voice.  Hunter groaned, but got up, pulling some sweatpants and a shirt on while he was on his way down the hall. "Yo, Blake, you hear him?"

            Blake came out in shorts and a muscle shirt, rubbing his eyes. "No, of course I didn't, that's why I'm up right now." Taking deep breaths, they transformed into their ninja uniforms and they ran over to the area in question, and saw the Kelzacks. A few seconds after they arrived, Tori, Dustin and Shane showed up too. Hunter felt the exhaustion try to drag him down, and refused to acknowledge it, keeping the pace as best he could. Within a few minutes, the fight was over and the remaining Kelzacks disappeared. 

            "Dude? What the hell was that?" Dustin asked, his demeanor unusually harsh. His curls were messy, as usual, and his clothes were rumpled. Even the typically tidy Tori was looking ruffled. 

            "Kelzacks," Shane replied in a fake-bright voice. "That was a nice little group. I guess Lothor likes being our alarm clock once every other second." Dustin threw him a dirty look and shook his head, with an, "I'm going back to bed," in farewell.

            "I think we should all catch a little more shut-eye. But where's Cam? He called us here, but he never showed," Hunter asked, running a hand over his hair in a restless movement.

            Tori gave him a strange look that he didn't know what to make of and replied, "I'll go see what's up, Hunter. Don't worry about him, I bet he's fine."

            "As if I could _not_ worry about him," he muttered under his breath, and missed the second look Tori gave him. "Fine," he said a little louder. "I'm going to go to the beach or something."

            Turning on his heel, he ran his way there, making sure no one saw him. Tori gave a half-smile, and ran her way to Ninja Ops to check on Cam. She'd wanted to see Hunter's reaction to Cam not being there, but she was a little worried herself.

            She walked in, and her eyes softened at what she saw. Cam was asleep against the console, his head on his arms. He didn't look as sarcastic in sleep as he could be, but innocent. "Cam?" she said quietly, and his head shot up, and hit the lower shelf. "Ow!" he yelped, and rubbed the bruised part gently. 

            Tori hissed in sympathy, and tried to keep her amusement off of her face. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay. It was just the Kelzacks, as usual. But Marah and Kapri weren't there, and neither was a monster. So, I'm assuming that they just played with their Uncle's toys again." Cam's lips quirked upwards at that.

            "No, I'm okay. I remember the computer going off and reaching Hunter," he blushed a little, since Tori did, after all, know his secret. "Then I remember… hitting my head because you scared the life out of me." The samurai sent a half-hearted glare her way, and her mouthed "Sorry." was all that was needed. 

            "You know, maybe telling the rest of the team wouldn't be as bad as you think," the gentle blue ranger suggested, and went quiet at his "Don't be stupid." look. 

            "And give the rest of them more room to make fun of me?" he asked with a disbelieving voice. He shook his head, "No, I can't do that. Even if they didn't do that, which I somehow doubt, they'd try to make something of any kind of look, and before long they'd know what _you_ know."

            Tori shook her head with a bewildered frown, "Cam, you can't hide this forever. They're your friends, your teammates. I think they'd surprise you. But being you, you'll do what you want. I'm going home. I need more sleep than I got."

            Cam sent her a semi-apologetic look, and then teased, "Up all night chatting with Blake again?" At her blush, he rolled his eyes. "You don't see me up all night chatting with Hunter, do you?" he asked, making her laugh. What he didn't see was Shane in the shadows, about to walk in. He went pale and paused there, trying not to draw attention to himself.

            "No, but that's only because you won't tell anyone, let alone Hunter, that your gay," she said, only half-seriously. Cam rolled his eyes again, but didn't contest her statement. "Besides, you've got the hots for Hunter, so I guess that's a good reason." Cam grabbed a piece of crumpled up paper, and threw it at her, making her laugh harder.

            "Quit making fun of the gay guy, Tor," he admonished jokingly. He turned back around to his console, and checked to make sure things were alright. In that time, Shane made haste and ran as far as he could to his favorite place: the skate park.

            The red ranger felt the cold sweat of panic trickle its way down to the small of his back, and slumped onto the bench at the very edge of the asphalt. _Cam__'s gay? He likes Hunter? I thought I was the only weird one. Now what do I do? Shane's thoughts were spinning out of control. His memories from a few years before came crashing through his mind._

~ _Shane at age 12 came into his house, lugging his backpack and skateboard behind him. He felt weird, because he'd just gotten his first kiss. Only, it hadn't been a girl, but his best friend, Jeremy. He'd known about Jeremy's interest in guys, they had_ been best friends forever, and he'd never told anyone else about it. It'd been a promise. But now he was more confused than ever. He knew he was attracted to girls. _Very_ attracted to them. But he'd found himself thinking of some select guys at school the same way he thought about the cheerleaders. So, now he was going to make up some BS story to see how his mom felt about it. __

_            "How was school sweetheart?" she asked him in the kitchen as he dug through the fridge for a soda. He shrugged, and said the first thing that came into his head, "It was there. Mom, what do you think about being bi? Or gay? There was a discussion in the science class about how people are born that way or something…" he trailed off, and took a gulp from the can of Coca-Cola._

_            "It's a sin, it's that plain and simple," his mother's mouth was firm, her eyes sober. "It's just not right! If they're discussing something like that in your school, I'm going to call—" _

_            "No, Mom, it was, like, in passing. Don't worry about it. It's sex ed. time again, and they always make sure to broach every subject. It's just the way things are these days," he interrupted, and tried to shrug it off. _

_            "Well, alright. If you're certain about that. Now, go wash up. Dinner's in a half-hour," she turned back to the dishes in the sink and resumed washing them, feeling strangely disturbed. ~_

            Wiping his forehead, he looked around to make sure no one was in sight, and ran home to get his skateboard. It was times like these that he missed Jeremy. He'd moved away the summer before, and now Shane wished he had someone to talk to who could relate to him. _If Tori knows about __Cam__ … maybe you can tell her about yourself, his inner voice whispered. Shaking off the suggestion, he decided to wait and think on it. _

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            Cam hacked into some more systems and looked for names that matched Hunter's foster brother's name. Sure enough, he was renting a house from Julie Sherman, who he suspected was out of town. _215 Blue Harbor Lane__. Tori was sitting on the table, and they'd long since stopped teasing each other, but Cam told her that Hunter had told Shane and Dustin something the other day, and she'd told him that Blake had informed her of the developments. _

            "I found him!" Cam stated, eager to go there and torture the bastard who'd hurt Hunter. Tori sat up gracefully and took a look at what he'd found. When she saw the address, the horrors of the past, and Jenny, came rocketing back to her, and she felt lightheaded, as if about to pass out. 

            "Cam?" she whispered. "I think I know who he is. I think that's the man who raped my best friend. He's why she's not here now!" She sobbed the last out, and sat back on the table hard, tears streaming down her cheeks. "She only talked to me back then. I'd been trying to convince her to talk to the police before … before she'd committed suicide. But that's where she was raped. She told me that much. What do we do now, Cam? What do we do now?"

**Okay, that's the end of chapter 6. I hope you liked it. Please review! I need the reviews, even if it's just to say you liked it. I'll start on chapter 7 as soon as I can. Thanks to Lee for getting me through this chapter. ^_^ Love you girl! Blessed be -- Chero**


	7. First Times

Maybe Someday

Chapter Seven: First Times

            Shane walked into the club, feeling the vibrations from the music through the floor. He wasn't used to this scene, and he really wanted to explore the other side of his sexuality. He knew that when his decision was cemented, and when he was sure, he wouldn't change because his parents didn't like it. He wouldn't deny who he was, if being bi truly was who he was. 

He walked up to the bar. "Can I get a Coke?" The bartender looked at him strangely, but complied. "Thanks." Shane looked around nervously. This _really wasn't his scene, and he felt uncomfortable, but tried not to talk himself out of it. _

_I need to give this a chance_ he thought, and surveyed the dance floor. He nearly jumped out of his skin when a really cute guy clapped him on the shoulder. The unruly brown hair reminded him somewhat of Dustin, but this guy was taller than him and his eyes were a darker brown. 

_Want to dance? _ the guy mouthed to him. Shane still felt uneasy, but nodded, and was thrust into the crowd. The guy pulled him from behind into his chest, and ground against the red ranger. "I'm Jay," he murmured into Shane's ear, causing the boy to shiver. Shane felt the guy, Jay, chuckle at his response, and tried to lose himself in the feeling of being with a guy. It was a little strange, but felt unusually right. 

Shane felt and heard the tempo of the music slow down, and while Jay's grip on him didn't lessen, it gentled until they were both swaying with the music. Shane felt peaceful, and leaned his head back on Jay's shoulder. _I wish I would've done this before. Then I would've known what I was, instead of being so unsure he thought. _

After about 10 more minutes, Shane dislodged from Jay and with an apologetic smile said, "I'm going to get out of here. Thanks for the dances. See you!" He made his way to the bar to pay for his drink and felt a hand snake out to grab his arm from behind. His head whipped around, but he forced himself to relax when he realized it was Jay. He handed him a napkin with his phone number on it, winked, and was absorbed back into the crowd. _Well, if anything it's a point in my favor that I got a number on the first try. _

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~ _Hunter, 5, got up to go get a glass of water from the sink. He tip-toed his way to the hallway when Jake appeared. He hid his fear, as he'd come to find that Jake got more satisfaction if he was afraid. Jake backed him into the bedroom again and Hunter regretted ever wanting the glass of water. It was going to happen again, and he was helpless to stop it. He didn't want Jake's parents to lock him in a room, especially if they locked him in a room with Jake. He so badly wanted to be big, as big as Jake so maybe it wouldn't happen. He heard the click of the lock sliding into place and swallowed hard. Jake grinned at him, and slowly slid his boxers off. He then slid Hunter's pajama bottoms off, slowly, prolonging the fear. He licked his lips as he saw Hunter's knees shaking. It turned him on so much better when Hunter fought, or at least was deathly afraid. He stroked Hunter until he was erect, and took pleasure from the guilty, shame-faced look Hunter had. After getting a sock to stuff into Hunter's mouth, he spit in his own hand to lube up. It hurt him less this way, but still hurt Hunter. Perfect_ thought Jake, as he tilted Hunter's legs up. He entered him quickly, pounding as hard as he could without the headboard banging against the wall and waking his parents. Hunter had tears rolling down his cheeks and blood dripping from his entrance. He didn't fight it anymore. It hurt more when he fought. Jake's breath hissed out as he came and Hunter whimpered as the salty semen stung him. Jake got a paper towel from under the bed and cleaned them both up, tossing Hunter's bottoms to him. He slid his boxers back on, and left Hunter to rock himself to sleep._ ~_

            Cam came awake with a gasp, and it took him a minute to calm himself. _I just shared Hunter's nightmare. There's no way I'd know what he was thinking otherwise_, he thought. His body even felt sore, as if it'd been abused too. The green ranger went into the bathroom to splash some water on his face, and he heard his father's voice faintly ask, "Are you alright, my son?" 

            His hands were shaking, but he replied, "I'll be fine, Dad." Taking a deep breath, he went back into his room, and wondered how to tell Hunter that he saw his dream. _I guess I could just tell him. Although why I have this _mystical connection_ with him, I'm not sure. Okay, I'm half in love with him, but that still doesn't account for it, he told himself. _

            With a shake of his head, Cam went back into his room to try and grab a few more hours of sleep. It didn't prove to be very easy.

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            Blake led Tori to his house. They weren't sure of anything else, but they were sure of each other, and their feelings. He put a finger over his lips in a motion to stay quiet, and she nodded, smiling nervously. He squeezed her hand and they made their way through the silent house to his room.

            After locking his door, he turned towards her and just looked, his eyes warm in the moonlit room. He felt butterflies in his stomach, and unconsciously rubbed there. He lifted his hand and with a feather-light touch lit upon her hair, her forehead and cheeks, tracing her features as if memorizing them.

            He slid his hands down, barely touching her until they reached her waist. His hands touched her skin, and she felt tingles and goose bumps race up and down her body in a shiver. She kept her eyes on Blake's face, and the mix of affection and nervousness served to calm her. Gently, he drew her tank top off, his eyes glued to her beautiful form. Her breasts were rosy and her nipples a beautiful copper-red. He didn't think she could be any more beautiful if she tried. He drew his own shirt off quickly, and smiled as her eyes took him in. It wasn't something she hadn't seen before, but now it was more cause for pleasure.

            Blake moved closer, their upper bodies almost but not quite touching. He held her face in his hands and kissed her softly with tenderness in his every move. She relaxed against him, and moaned deep in her throat as they touched. As he kissed her, he drew her shorts and panties down in one move. Tori shivered again, and when his hand rubbed over her lower belly, she whimpered. Blake pulled back to divest himself of the rest of his clothing, their sandals kicked into the corner. 

            For a few moments they just looked at each other, Tori taking in that part of him she'd never before seen. With a soft touch, she felt his manhood and flushed when he moaned and took her hand away. He grabbed her hands, lacing their fingers together, and kissed her again, and again, it served to calm her. It was something they knew paired with these new feelings. Through the rest of the night they didn't think about the problems that were arising, but only themselves. They explored each other with soft, delighted laughter and warm, tender looks. When they finally came together, the rightness of it rivaled any other feelings they'd had thus far. After, they lay in a tangle, touching the other with firm, lazy caresses and drifted in their love.

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            Hunter was at the lake again. He'd had another nightmare, and they were started to make him wish that he'd never sleep again. He felt ashamed of the pleasure he'd gotten when Jake had been—he didn't want to think about it. He just didn't want to think anymore, didn't want to be there anymore. All he wanted was for it to go away. Was that so very much to ask?

            "Hunter?" Cam's voice surprised him. The green samurai hadn't been able to go back to sleep after all. He'd gotten this weird nagging feeling, urging him outside. It was beginning to feel stuffy in his room anyway, but he wasn't surprised when Hunter was at the lake. "You had another one," Cam said, his certainty unnerving the crimson ranger.

            "Yeah, I did. How'd you—how do you always know?" Hunter asked softly, feeling strangely comforted by the other teen's presence. Cam sat down next to him, close enough that their shoulders touched.

            "I saw, Hunter," Cam said quietly, seriously. "I experienced it with you. Don't ask me how, but I saw your memory tonight. I—I'm sorry." He paused, wondering how to make the words come out right. They never seemed to anymore.

            Hunter blanched, and turned away, ashamed that even for a second Cam had seen him like that. He felt a hand brush over his head, and leaned into it. It was Cam, and Cam had been there from the start. He felt grateful, and a few other feelings that up until now he hadn't wanted to analyze. He didn't think of himself as gay, but Cam was a rare exception. 

            Cam was shaking inside, unsure of himself. He wasn't used to making the first move in anything, but this was Hunter and Hunter was one of the most important things in his life, if only in secret. He let his lips brush over his crimson ranger's forehead. Hunter looked up at him with a confused look, but he didn't pull away. He scooted closer to Cam, and put his head on his shoulder. They sat there together, watching the water, and reveling in the feelings that for one were relatively new. For the first time, they both drifted in and out of sleep without dreams and without fear.

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            Shane reclined on his bed and toyed with the piece of paper Jay had handed him, feeling strangely elated at the victory, because if he was honest with himself, it really was a victory. It showed him that he _did, in fact, like guys, and that he should and would be free to explore that realm. He was going to call Jay, right then._

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            **Jake chuckled as he hung up from the boy he'd met earlier that night, Shane, his name was. Shane was so different looking from all of his other victims and he reveled getting to know him. It would make the boy easier to break. _As they say he thought amusedly, __knowledge is power._**

Okay everyone, that's the end of chapter seven. Let me know what you thought of it in review form please. ^_^ I'll try my best to hurry with chapter eight. Blessed be, Chero


	8. Justice

Maybe Someday

Chapter Eight:

            "How long?" Hunter asked in a whisper, the both of them relaxed watching the sunrise.

            Cam took a deep breath. He knew he'd been taking a chance when he kissed Hunter, but he couldn't help himself. He couldn't deny it anymore. "Since you took my father. I wasn't exactly happy with you at the time, but you didn't seem to like doing it any more than I liked you doing it. You were beautiful, and brooding. I don't know why I liked you, but that's when it started." He could see Hunter blushing and chuckled. He couldn't help it, it was really cute.

            "That long? Why didn't you tell anyone before, about you being--" he stopped, unsure of the polite way to bring it up.

            "Gay? Since I was pretty you I knew about it, but almost everyone else at the Academy was straight, and I was, well, scared," he admitted. 

            "But Dustin, Shane and Tori, they all are really cool people. They wouldn't judge you for that," Hunter said, snuggled deeper into Cam's arms. It was really comfortable there. He didn't feel scared, as he had the first time Cam had touched him, after that one nightmare. 

            "Tori knows about it now. The others don't. I suspect my father knows, he seems to know everything," he stopped, smiling as Hunter's hair tickled under his chin. "You don't have to do this, you know. Be with me. You're vulnerable right now, and I don't want to take advantage of that." His honor system smarted right now, but he couldn't just be Hunter's boyfriend if Hunter only wanted comforting.

            "I was attracted to you," Hunter said, his voice barely audible. "I didn't want anyone to know either. Then the nightmares started and I couldn't keep up with everything, so I put that to the back of my mind." 

            Cam let out a breath in relief. He would still take things slow, but it was nice to know his feelings were reciprocated. "About that, I wonder how—never mind, it doesn't matter." 

            "The whole dream thing? It's alright, you can mention it. It's a part of me, what happened. Hopefully one of these days I'll heal. I guess it's because I trust you. Plus, we both, well, like each other, I guess, so that's a probable reason for the connection," Hunter knew he was babbling, but he was nervous, he couldn't help it.

            "We'll just take it at face value. I really wish I could've done something though. It was like watching a movie and I couldn't stop anything," Cam said with helplessness clear in his voice.

            "I know why that is, Cam. It's because I have to save myself from him. I have to face him, and I have to win. I think that's when it'll begin to get better," Hunter stopped talking and just let Cam's warm presence seep into him. 

            "I think there's a way for you to do that. You see, I found out where he is, Hunter. I found where he's living. And Tori knows him, Hunter," Cam felt obligated to tell him everything. He could do no less, Hunter being Jake's first victim.

            Hunter paled again. "Tori knows him? How?"

            "Her friend, Jenny was raped. He's staying at the same address. Jenny only talked to Tori after… and a few days later she committed suicide, and Tori was the one who found her. 215 Blue Harbor Lane. I think that that address will stick in my brain forever," Cam ended in a whisper, a lone tear making its way down his cheek. Hunter rubbed up and down his arm, and kissed the tear away. He needed to comfort the green ranger, because he cared so much about him. Cam liked him despite being damaged, and he could barely wrap his mind around it. 

            "We'll beat him, Cam. I know we will, because I won't let him hurt anyone else, ever again. He'll rot in hell for what he did," he said firmly, quietly, surely. He was healing, and part of that was due to Cam just listening to him. He put his arm around Cam's waist, and watched the sun rise.

            ____________________________________________________________

Tori felt rays of the sun slant over her body. A bittersweet feeling filled her, and she smiled even as tears pricked at her eyes. Jenny would've loved to meet Blake, and after finding out where Jake lived, she wanted to kill him. 

The warm, solid form of Blake was pressed in behind her, and she felt lighter with the realization that the night before had really happened. She felt a few aches, but they felt nice, in her opinion. Tori felt a smile curve her lips while she replayed the night in her head. Blake sighed deeply, and blinked his eyes open, squinted when sunlight glared into his eyes.

"Morning," Tori said, and turned around, his arm tightening when she was turned all the way. She touched her fingertips to his cheeks and lips, and giggled when he nipped her. He leaned down to kiss her and then they just lay there, gazing at one another.

___________________________________________________________

Shane was sitting on the bench watching his friend Sergio mess up yet again. Hearing him curse in Spanish would have been funny under other circumstances, but the misery on his face took the impulse away. He got up and jogged over to his longtime friend. 

"Need a hand? Or to relearn your stunts?" Shane asked jokingly, trying to keep the situation from being too awkward.

"Yeah, thanks man," Sergio said and held a hand out. Shane couldn't help notice that his friend had an awesome body, and that hair all around his shoulders… He grabbed the hand and pulled his friend up. 

_Down boy_ Shane thought to himself. "No problem. What's been going on? I've never seen your moves this bad before, except for that one--"

"Let's not bring that one up again," Sergio said with a half smile, his Spanish accent showing more than usual. "My girlfriend broke up with me today. Let's just say she couldn't accept me the way I am, so when I, well, I'll leave it at that." He walked over to where his shirt was and wiped his drenched forehead with it.

"I'm sorry man, that must suck," Shane said. _And he's straight, so stay down_ he told himself. "Anything I can do to help?"

"Nah, not really. I'm probably better off without her. Actually, I'm definitely better off without her. Besides, she could be a major bitch, and I would've broken up with her before long," he looked pensive. "Sergie, don't do this, don't do that," he imitated, "She was too controlling. It just doesn't feel too good right now."

Shane nodded sympathetically. Even though he'd never had a real girlfriend, although he missed Skyla with all of his heart, he could empathize. "I get it. Listen, why don't you wait until you're feeling better to skate?"

Sergio smirked, and replied, "I kind of get that now, but listen, I have to go. Talk to you soon!" Sergio jogged away, and Shane had to stifle the urge to check out his ass. _What is with me today? Besides, I'm with Jay. Gotta keep my head on straight. Or not_ he snickered, and then jumped when the ground rumbled beneath his feet.

He heard and felt another explosion and after a brief look around, he jogged over to a deserted part of the park, tapping his communicator in order to get in touch with Cam.

____________________________________________________________

Cam and Hunter jumped up from their perch, running towards Ninja Ops and when Cam finally got to his computer, his fingers flew over the keys as he sought to find our where the disturbance was coming from. He located it at the warehouse district on sixth, the same place where the Kelzacks had attacked.

The monster looked like a different version of Zurgane, which was freaky in and of itself. He heard Shane's voice over the com link. *_Hey, what's going on here?* came his voice through the speakers. _

Cam shook his head and replied, "Another attack, the same place as before. Looks like Zurgane's little brother is in town." Hunter snickered behind him, but the sound didn't match the sober look on his face. 

"Let's book it," Cam said, his eyes sparkling up at Hunter. He stole a quick kiss, and then they whipped into their ranger uniforms.

Thunder Storm

Samurai Storm

RANGER FORM, HA!

Within seconds, the crimson and green rangers stood there, and then ran out of Ops, streaking their way to sixth, where they met up with the others.

The monster, Toradron, was big and bulky, looking startlingly familiar. He breathed fire out, and large canisters blew up, shocking the rangers. The Kelzacks arrived, and they made quick work of them, until Tori had been surrounded by too many for her to fight. At that point, Blake broke in, agilely fighting his way through to her.

They faced off with the monster, his fiery projectiles forcing them back every few minutes. They surrounded him, and attacked him with ninja swords in gold mode. The monster fell back and sputtered some sparks at them.

Finally they joined their weapons and fired at him, at which point he blew up, destroyed. The rangers high-fived each other, and pumped fists in victory. 

"Well, that was certainly fun. I was wondering when another one of them would show up," said Dustin as his face mask shifted so that his visor disappeared. He squinted but looked happy with the victory. "Now, I need to make it back to the track. I have some major work to do." His morph shattered and he streaked back to a deserted area of the track.

            _____________________________________________________________

Tori and Blake walked along the shore, holding hands and taking their time. The weather was beautiful, as it was apt to be at that time of year.

"I know who hurt Jenny," she blurted out, and felt Blake stiffen and then squeeze her hand. "It was the same person who hurt Hunter. Jake hurt them both."

"How do you know that, Tor?" he asked, hoping beyond hope that she was wrong but suspecting that she wasn't. 

"The same address. He's renting a house on Blue Harbor Lane. It was the same address that Jenny had told me about. It was so weird. I felt so awful when I'd heard. I wish she were still here. She was so funny, so supportive of me in every way. I loved her, I really did," Tori felt first one tear and then another wind their way down her cheeks. 

Blake stopped and took her into his arms. "I'm here for you Tor, and I love you so much it hurts. Please don't cry. We'll get the bastard." He rubbed her back soothingly.

Tori's brain had stopped computing with the "I love you" part. She pulled back a little and looked him in the eye. "You love me? Really?" Her eyes were brighter than they had been, and she took comfort in the words. A half-smile graced his face, and he nodded, dipping his head down and kissing her softly.

_____________________________________________________________

Shane walked down by the Harbor, sensing when someone came up behind him and turning before they could touch him. "Oh, it's you. Hey Jay, what's up?" he asked, nervous and flustered as he was.

Jay smirked at him. "I'm just fine. It's a beautiful day, and now I'm seeing a beautiful guy." He chuckled when Shane looked down and blushed. It was getting easier and easier to get past his blockades, and he couldn't wait until Shane was totally at ease with him. He felt himself hardening at the mere thought of it.

"So, what kind of things do you like to do?" Jay asked, leaning back against the wooden fence that was attached to the docks.  

"I skateboard, read, hang with my friends. The usual stuff," Shane replied, relaxing in Jay's presence. 

Jake frowned. It was too vague, but maybe he could maneuver him later on. "Do you want to go out later on tonight?" he asked. "We could meet up by my place." He felt adrenaline rush into his system. It would be tonight, that he was sure about.

Shane shrugged, not knowing what Jay had planned for him. "Sure, sounds good. Where do you live?" 

"215 Blue Harbor Lane," Jay replied with a bright smile, and with a peck on Shane's cheek, he said, "I have to take care of a few errands. I'll see you tonight, around 8 or so. See ya!" 

Shane shook his head. It baffled him, but he felt butterflies start up in his stomach again. He couldn't wait for the night to arrive. He was sure he would have fun with whatever Jay had planned. 

Shane didn't see Sergio further down the docks, but Sergio had seen the exchange and felt a pang of jealousy. At least now he knew that Shane liked guys and _that would give him a fighting chance. _

____________________________________________________________

Hunter was back at his house, contemplating the recent arrangement with Cam. He felt excited and truly happy for the first time since the whole ordeal had started. He was comfortable with his decision to be with the green ranger, and now all he had to do was break it to his brother.

Blake slammed the door shut, and stalked into the kitchen, banging cabinets and clanging dishes. He was hungry and he was angry. He wanted so badly to pummel Jake, but didn't have much of an outlet. First his brother, and then Tori's friend… it made him want to scream at the injustice of it all.

Hunter walked into the kitchen and frowned at his brother. "What's the matter?" he asked, and got out the coffee beans and grinder. It would always serve to calm him, and hopefully it would work for his angry sibling.

"Tori knows Jake, and you know Jake and you were both hurt by him," Blake choked out, tears thickening his voice. "It's not fair." 

Hunter nodded. "No, it's not fair, but that's the way it is. Cam just told me this morning about Jenny. We will beat him, bro. You can't doubt that. I can't give up this battle, because it's the only way I'll make it through this. By beating him, and by having you and having…" he trailed off, blushing slightly and looking down.

Blake looked at him curiously. "Having what? Or who?" he asked, leaning against the counter, the anger quieting down. 

Hunter sighed heavily. "Now or never. Having Cam. He and I are, kinda, well, together?" He cringed and then looked up at his brother, who looked vaguely amused.

"Did you think I'd have something against you? Cam can be annoying, but otherwise he's a cool person. And perfect for you Mr. Dark and Brooding," he kidded, trying to ease his brother's fears.

Hunter felt his breath rush out in relief. "Okay, that's a good thing. Thanks for taking it so well." His shoulders slumped and he leaned his head back, then he went and poured the coffee grounds into the filter and slid it into place. He turned it on, and waited for the wonderful smell to permeate the house. The two brothers stayed quite for the next while.

_____________________________________________________________

At 7:30, Shane picked a tight red shirt and some loose jeans for his date with Jay. He was so nervous, but happy about it all. He started out of the house and slowly made his way to Blue Harbor Lane. He looked at the numbers on the mailboxes until he found 215, and by that time it was 10 minutes to 8. 

Jay opened the door when he knocked and his eyes heated as he took in the red ranger. "You look good. Come on in, I just have a few more things to do. After the door closed, things started to go horribly wrong. His guard was down and he was thrust into the wall with a hand curling around his neck.

"You move, and you won't be able to breathe, I can promise you that," Jake hissed into his ear. His other hand stroked and fondled the red ranger, who was responding despite the fear. He felt the fingers digging into his neck, almost, but not quite cutting off his airway.

"I'm gonna fuck you, and then I'm gonna do it again, and you're going to beg me for it, just like Jenny and just like Hunter," he whispered silkily. Shane felt afraid, the fact that this was _the Jake freaking him out, and he stilled, letting his training take over. He unobtrusively moved his foot inside and behind Jay's.  He brought his arm up against the wall, and aimed his elbow. _

He quickly kicked Jake in the back of his foot while at the same time elbowing him in the gut. Jake got the wind knocked out of him, and still tried to reach for Shane as he opened the door and fled. 

Shane could feel tears streaming down his cheeks. He needed to get to Ninja Ops, quickly. He looked around, and finding the area deserted, much as it had been the night Jenny was raped, he streaked as fast as he could towards his destination.

"Cam, I need your help," he gasped as he rushed through the entrance. He saw Cam whirl around from the console and he replied, "With what?"

"I was just almost raped. And it was Jake, only I didn't know it until it was almost too late," the words were pouring out of him. 

Cam paled and said, "Okay, hang on, let me get the rest of the guys." While Shane closed his eyes and rubbed his hands over his face, he opened the com link and before they knew it, Blake, Tori, Hunter and Dustin were there. 

"Jake almost raped Shane," Cam said, his voice as emotionless as he could get it. He was shocked and scared, but he needed to think clearly.

"Let's go pay little Jake a visit," Blake suggested. "And then we can call the police. Those marks on your throat, Shane, make it clear what almost happened."

They all practically ran to the address, and Hunter took a deep breath before knocking. Jake opened the door with rage suffusing his every feature and distorting the handsomeness of his features. He looked as ugly on the outside at this point, as he was on the inside. 

"Hello, Jake," Hunter said, his glare at full power. "How unpleasant it is to see you again." He pushed his way into the house and the rest of the rangers followed him.

Hunter pushed him into the chair, and found some rope nearby, not questioning what he'd use it for, but knowing, remembering. 

"You know, I've been getting my memories back, and I don't like what's there. Did you have a good time raping me? Because you're never going to do that to anyone again. If anything, you'll be someone's bitch," his voice was hard and made the others flinch. Tori came up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"I blame you for my friend Jenny's death," she said quietly. "She killed herself because of what you did. I hope you remember this, and her, forever."

Jake looked mutinous but grinned and leered. "I remember her every night. I jack off thinking about her pain. I'm the one with the power. No copper is going to arrest me. Where's your proof?"

Shane brought the edge of his shirt down and bluish, yellowish bruises marred his skin. "Proof enough here. You tried to rape me, just like you did my friend. Well, you won't have that power anymore. Come on guys, let's get out of here."

Hunter left him tied up, and Shane went to his phone and dialed 911. He was shaking and he told the operator exactly what happened. "I need help, please. It hurts. I need help," he said with a whisper, and after being assured that a police officer was on his way, he hung up. "You guys, go. You can't be here when they get here."

Hunter and the rest of the rangers looked at him, and then nodded, and after leaving through the back door, they streaked away. Shane rocked back and forth on the floor by the phone, and try as he might, relived the violation Jay, _Jake, had put him through. _

When the police arrived, they took in his condition and got him to stand up. The haunted look in his eyes convinced them of what had happened.

"But how did he come to be tied up?" the female officer asked. Shane was shaking, but replied, "I wasn't expecting him to hurt me. I've been trained in the martial arts, so I hit him, found the rope, tied him up, and called you guys."

"His little buddies came around here too," Jake sneered, and Shane donned a confused look. "He's nuts. I didn't have the time to leave and come back with friends." He pulled his shirt down and the officer winced at the bruising. 

The officer, looked around the room, went through the foyer to the living room and gasped at the sight of the dead puppy. She called for her partner and they took in the spiral notebooks, one of which was open. She read about Jake's plans to rape Shane, and got out her handcuffs. 

"You're under arrest for attempted rape and animal abuse," she said and Shane sighed with relief.

_____________________________________________________________

From the next block, Cam and Hunter strolled down the docks. "It's really over, isn't it?" Hunter asked quietly. "He's been beaten, caught. He was also arrogant enough to keep journals, which works in our favor."

Cam nodded, and took Hunter's hand, threading their fingers together. "It's over. Now he'll pay for what he did. Plus, karmic payback will be a true justice." He felt peaceful, glad that Jake had been caught. He'd played with the wrong boys and girls when it came to attacking people.

"Come on, Hunter. Let's go home." Cam said, and he led them there slowly, savoring the feel of their hands clasped together and their arms brushing. It was a new beginning, a new love that was blossoming as slowly as a rose.

**I hope you've enjoyed this chapter, and I will be writing an epilogue. Please review and tell me what you thought! This was a very important fic for me, and now that it's done, I've healed just a little bit more from my own abuse. This happens more often than people assume, incest does, and never think that it can't happen to you. Be careful, and watch your back. Blessings on you and I'll get the epi as soon as possible. Blessed be, Chero**


	9. Epilogue

**Wow. I cannot believe that this is the end of Maybe Someday. I loved this fic and worked hard on it. This is the epilogue, but a few days ago I thought of a sequel. So, there will be more to this story, I promise. Okay, on with this chapter.**

Epilogue: Maybe Someday

~**Three weeks later~**

Shane got off of his board and picked it up, wiping the sweat off of his forehead. He saw a girl with long, brown hair talking to another girl. They were whispering, and after one of them said a shocked, "He's _what_?!" they both sent him a dirty look. He felt confused, but made his way over.

            "What did I do?" he asked them, looked as baffled as he felt. The brown haired girl lifted her chin defiantly and turned away, but the blond that she'd been talking to answered him in a haughty tone.

            "You stole Jessi's boyfriend away from her," she said as if he'd done so on purpose, Jessi going "Sara, what the hell are you doing?" in an angry voice at the same time. Shane coughed and said in a choked voice, "I did what? I don't know what you're talking about."

            Sara examined his face curiously. "You stole her boyfriend. I'm sure you _know_ what I'm talking about." And with that they both flipped their hair and walked away. 

            Shane shook his head and thought, _what, are those girls nuts? before sitting on the bench to think it over. He saw his friend Sergio skating over and few things happened at once. First was the fact that his shirt was hanging around his neck, leaving the top part of his body in perfect view. Shane felt like drooling, but kept himself from doing it, barely. The second thing was that his hair was down and shiny, and he flushed when Sergio caught him staring, and he looked down. _

            His thoughts were in a whirl, and he didn't notice when Sergio made his way over to him. He jumped when he felt a hand come down on his shoulder from behind. Sergio kept his hand there while he circled to the front of the bench and sat next to his friend. 

            "What's the matter, Shane?" he asked, his hand lightly trailing down Shane's arm until he lifted it off and turned to the side, his head tilted as he scrutinized Shane's expression.

            "Just something weird. Some girl said I stole her boyfriend," Shane said, sounding indignant. He didn't notice Sergio pale slightly and swallow hard. "I don't even know who he is and I don't know what would make her think that."

            Sergio took a deep breath. He felt so nervous, and he couldn't believe Jessi had confronted Shane, but there it was. "I think I can explain that, somewhat." He cleared his throat, and Shane looked at him, concerned. Sergio felt his cheeks flame, but went on, "Jessi was my girlfriend. I told her… damn it," he paused, and looked down. He was so unsure, even after seeing Shane be kissed by that guy. "I told her I was bi," the words rushed out of his mouth, and he mumbled, "She wanted to know who I ever liked, so I told her. Then she turned and screamed at me about it."

            Shane was shell-shocked. Even with his attraction to guys, he'd never known about his friend. He was hurt. "Why didn't you tell me this before?" he asked, pain in his voice. 

            Sergio looked at him again, and raised his hand to Shane's cheek. "I didn't think anyone would understand. At least, I didn't think anyone who was straight could know. Besides, I kind of, sort of, well, liked you," if Sergio had been standing he would've been shuffling his feet. As it was he looked like a little boy caught being bad. 

            Shane looked vaguely happy, as if he had heard but it hadn't sunken in yet. "Wait, you like _me_?!" was about the only thing coming out of his mouth. Sergio looked surer of himself, now that the confession was over. "Yeah, you. I don't know, you were just such a cool person, not to mention really hot, that I just fell for you... hard. I couldn't tell you before because I didn't know which way you swung and I couldn't risk our friendship just for that."

            Shane nodded, and then thought about it for a second. "What prompted you to do this now, then? I mean, you could've just kept quiet about Jessi being your ex and the whys of it all..."

            Sergio smiled, unconsciously playing with his long hair, "Well, I saw you kiss that guy over on the docks and that's when I knew I had a chance. Then today when you were staring at me," he chuckled, "well, I'd been hoping for that reaction."

            Shane blushed to the roots of his hair and then asked, "Wait a minute, you did that on purpose?" 

            Sergio grinned full out and Shane caught his breath. _God he's so sexy he thought, itching to run his fingers through Sergio's long fall of hair and his hand was in the process of doing that when he stopped himself._

            Sergio's eyes were warm and dark as he took Shane's hand and wove their fingers together. He leaned towards him, and then paused, "I do not want to hide this," he said, his accent getting thicker. Shane swallowed hard and nodded his agreement. Sergio leaned the rest of the way in and felt the explosion of sensation in that soft brush of lips. Soft and tender, as first kisses were, they brushed their lips together again. Their eyes met and smiles bloomed on their faces. Shane's ordeal faded in his head as Sergio showed the caring that he'd always longed for.

            ____________________________________________________________

            Hunter closed his door and gestured nervously towards his bed. "Have a seat. You thirsty or any--" he was cut off as Cam brushed his fingers over his lips. They seared him and then Cam's lips met his and he felt heat rush through him.

            Cam kept it simple and didn't push to go further, but he moaned when Hunter's hands ran through his hair, and he met Hunter's tongue in a sloppy kiss. Hunter pulled back and Cam didn't stop him but leaned his forehead against the crimson ranger's as they fought to calm themselves down. His hands were at Hunter's waist and against his warm skin. He caressed the area and Hunter snuggled his head underneath Cam's chin in the crook of his neck. They stood there for a few minutes before Hunter moved away, climbed onto his bed and waved Cam over. 

They'd done this before, lay down to just hold each other. It had started directly after Jake had tried to rape Shane, and Hunter hadn't wanted to be alone. Cam had an arm underneath Hunter's shoulders and his breath puffed across his neck, causing him to close his eyes in pleasure. He fingered the small box in his pocket and drew it out. 

Hunter's eyes opened at the rustling and movement, and they widened as he saw the velvet box. Cam scooted down until they were both level and he flipped the lid. There were two sterling silver bands with what looked like vines intertwined engraved into them. He sat up suddenly and Cam felt bereft with the loss of warmth. Hunter looked unsure of what the rings were for, but he had a feeling… 

"They're promise rings," Cam said quietly. "I want you to know that I care about you, and that I'll be there for you." He felt sure of his feelings, but he was willing to give Hunter all the time he needed.

"I-I don't know if I can accept this," Hunter whispered. He scratched up and down his arms. "You don't know how much that means to me, that you don't see me like I see me. But I don't think I can do it, Cam. I really don't."

Cam looked at him calmly and asked, "How do you see yourself?" He closed the box and laid it on the bedside table. His hands were trembling a little. It wasn't unexpected, but it hurt all the same that the answer seemed to be no.

            Hunter shook his head and drew his knees up to his chest in a protective motion. Cam didn't approach him, but he didn't back away. "I'm dirty, Cam. And you make me feel like I'm not, but it doesn't change anything that happened."

            Cam crawled closer to him slowly, and sat next to him. He softly ran his fingers through Hunter's hair, down his face, across his cheeks and lips. "You think you have something to be ashamed of? I don't see how. You survived your abuse, you beat your abuser. You didn't want what happened or ask for it."

            Hunter felt a tear streak down his cheek. "Some of what happened felt good. It felt good and bad and it confuses me that I could feel that way. It makes me feel—ashamed, that it could feel good."

            Cam looked concerned, "Hunter, you didn't ask for it. You didn't want it to happen. Whatever he did, your body reacted. It wasn't a conscious decision. When you kiss me, hug me, do anything like that, that's a choice. You've made a choice to be with me. Jake took advantage of you, just because you were there. Don't ever think you're dirty because of that, you hear me?"

            Hunter stared at him with tears in his eyes and nodded. Cam drew him down next to him again and rubbed down his side. He used his touch to comfort Hunter and he felt himself relaxing more and more. Hunter cuddled closer to him and sniffled, and there they both fell asleep.

            ____________________________________________________________

            _Seems like everyone else gets a happy ending_ Dustin thought bitterly. He knew they thought of him as the airhead, the stupid one, but he really was smarter than he sounded. He wanted so badly to have a happy ending of his own, but there didn't seem to be one in sight.

            _Marah_ her name popped into his head and it hurt to remember. He'd trusted her, and she had betrayed him. He got a wrench out and continued to work on his bike. A chain bit into his wrist and he cursed, dropping the wrench and getting a rag to wipe the blood off. Why didn't he get a happy ending?

            ______________________________________________________________

            Blake and Tori sat by the lake near Ninja Ops. He'd been worried about her. Ever since their confrontation with Jake she'd been withdrawn, she wouldn't even talk to him at all. He took a deep breath and for once took the initiative.

            "Tor, how're you doing? Dealing with all this, I mean," he asked in a timid voice. 

            "I'm just trying to get through each day. Jenny has her justice now, so that is a good thing. But I really wanted to murder him when I saw him," once the words started, they wouldn't stop. "And all I could do was restrain myself and keep from sinking to his level. But I still hurt for her, and I still feel guilty. I should've been there for her, Blake! Then maybe she would be alive today!" She had tears in her eyes, but refused to let them fall.

            Blake shook his head, his chocolate brown eyes showing that he knew just how she felt. "I wish I could've killed him too. He hurt my brother in a way some people never recover from. But by not sinking to his level, we've beaten him Tor. Shane, Hunter, Jenny, the rest of us. He will never win, because A) he kept really good, detailed notes. And B) we caught him and thanks to Shane and Cam we knew where he was and made sure he couldn't do it again. So now what do we do?" He sighed, "We grieve and we go on."

            Tori nodded and settled back into him, snuggled as close as she could get before she broke down and cried her heart out. His head leaned against hers, Blake let a few of his own tears of grief fall. 

            ____________________________________________________________

            Hunter woke up with Cam next to him, and blinked sleepy eyes at the clock. It was only 7. He saw track marks from tears on Cam's face and felt ravaged by guilt. He'd hurt him, and he didn't ever want to do that. He stroked his fingers down Cam's face and kissed the tears away.

            Cam's arm tightened around him and rubbed his back, sending shivers up Hunter's spine. It felt good to be held. Even better to be held by this man. He leaned his head down and caught the green ranger's lips with his own, slowly bringing him into the waking world.

            They kissed softly for a minute before Cam deepened it, and Hunter went along with him. Before long, Cam drew back and tried to catch his breath. "Sorry, I didn't mean to go that far," he said, his voice wary. 

            Hunter shook his head, his eyes full of confusion. He swung his leg over Cam's hips and sat upright, looked down with darkened eyes. He took a hold of Cam's arms and held them down before leaning down to kiss him once again.

They went on like that before once again Cam tore his head away and broke the kiss. "I can't do this, Hunter," he said, and Hunter slid down beside him again. Cam sat up next to him, and looked at him for a moment. "Will you trust me?" he asked hesitantly. When Hunter nodded, Cam used one hand only and began tracing Hunter's features.

When he reached his collarbone, Hunter had sighed and started to relax with the caresses. Cam drew the crimson shirt off of his love's body, and Hunter stiffened up again, and so Cam started over again with the caresses, at the forehead and in the hair, down the cheeks and across the lips, ticklishly down the neck and across the collarbone. On he went until Hunter was feeling like a puddle of gooey liquid. 

There Cam stopped, and slid down until he could bring his arm across Hunter's midsection. Hunter didn't stiffen this time, content that they would go no further. It was different from his memories of Jake. The sure caresses from Cam had been full of tenderness and love, and had instilled in him a trust that was beyond what he'd had before. 

"I love you," Cam whispered, and they both fell into a light slumber, content with what they had for the moment.

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**Hey everyone. Been a long journey, but it's helped me, and I'll be starting the sequel soon. I don't think it'll be a very long sequel, but you never know. Blessings on you. 3, Chero**


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